I'm Glad, Coz' I'm With You
by CrOxxx
Summary: Two girls, a Cat and a Guppy Fish, hopped on their private jet to start their new lives; one ecstatic, one really not. Their destination? The infamous town of Elmore. The two characters will experience comfort, chaos and most of all – love. In Candice's bowl of life, she always needed some spice. So when Gumball and Darwin are thrown into the mix, what ingredients cannot be made?
1. A Soaring Inception

**Well, here it is, my first fanfiction. As this is my first, you probably know what to expect, but I hope I can impress you somewhat. This story is inspired by the lack of lengthy romance fics in The Amazing World of Gumball, so I plan to make my own! (Hopefully). This is also inspired by all the romance fanfics I've read. As such, I plan to use elements and ideas from other stories that I've read.**

 **The character of Natasha is ownership of Dinogirl23. She did a great job with the creation, so make sure you go over to her profile after this (try not to read the Chuck Norris jokes XD). All other OCs are likely created by me. In addition, the character of Candice Green is primarily based off of me, along with some tweaking here and there.**

 **Not too much else to say really, so let's get into it! I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"There is never a time or a place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment"

* * *

 ** _A Soaring Inception_**

Above the sparkling sea and puffy clouds, a plane – more specifically a private jet – can be observed zooming through the sky following a linear path, taking no regards to the laws of velocity. Inside said plane, a half-lid pair of black eyes are fixated on the apparent appeal of the upper atmosphere. These eyes were rested upon the paws of the beholder – its elbow lazily perched up on the window's edge. An exasperated sigh escaped her lips. _Uggghhh when are we gonna be there_ – she said to no one in particular.

This impatient creature is named Candice Green. She is an anthropomorphic cat with an unusually petite torso, along with a relatively big head. She has bright, candy red fur all over her twelve year old body, circular eyes that contain perfectly black pupils, a pink nose plastered on her upper lip, two triangular ears as well as small whiskers pointing outwards from her cheeks – clearly denoting that she is indeed a female. As for current cloth wear, a white polo shirt can be seen covering her torso. In addition, she also wears a grey, cloth, median to long length skirt, the backside of which punctured to let her small, ovular tail have some breathing room. She doesn't wear socks nor shoes.

"Hey Candice? Aren't you excited! You should be pumped right now! I certainly am!" Said by an intimate voice.

Sitting next to her, swaying her feet side to side like two pendulums was a ten year old turquoise guppy fish, the name of which is Natasha Green, the sister of Candice Green. She has a big ovular head with large cheeks, above which identical eyes to Candice (not in spirit) are seen with three eyelashes on each. Spectacularly, this guppy fish grew legs from said head – both of which are long and athletic looking, enforced by the pair of purple and white tennis shoes on the appendages. These shoes both have a crescent pattern aligning their sides. Another feature of the water bound creature is the long, curved tailfin sticking out from her backside, which fades into an aquamarine shade at the tip. She has a similar looking dorsal fin on her forehead – only it is limp. As a result, it trails over her right eye like a fringe. After a moment of perplexity, Candice took her arm off the rim.

"Tash, how do manage to stay so optimistic in the most dreadful situations?" Candice inquired.

"Well, how do you manage to stay so pessimistic in the most joyful situations?" Natasha returned.

"Whatever. Just please, leave me alone, I'm really not in the mood right now." Candice exclaimed, completely looking away from Natasha impertinently.

"Natasha, is Candice alright?" Questioned their mom from the seat behind. She was similar to Candice in many ways, only she was taller and wore a long, red dress and a pearl necklace. Still no shoes though.

"She's fine, just a bit gripey is all!" She playfully said, giggling while doing so. Candice still remained silent. Natasha was always one to brighten up the mood – even if it didn't work for all recipients.

"Oh that's good to hear dear. Tell her we'll be there in twenty minutes." This induced a groan, courtesy of Candice.

"Why do we even have to go to this stupid town anyway? What was wrong with the last one?" Interrogated Candice, obviously frustrated. His dad, who was also a red cat but wore a suit and tie, stepped in from behind her to answer her cry.

"The reason is that my friend is offering an exciting new business opportunity involving his company, The Rainbow Factory, located in Elmore. He needs me to stay at the town so we can run our joint company together." Described Mr. Green.

"Why couldn't he just of merged the company back in Welridge?" Inquired Candice.

"Come on Candice, it's going to be great! Elmore is a fantastic town from what I've heard, and the money your father will gain from this opportunity will mean that you will have plenty of things to do. Think of all the friends you'll make!" Cheerfully said her mother.

"Whatever." Finalised Candice. Natasha continued to chatter with her mom, while Candice contemplated her mother's response. _Friends, I don't need friends. . ._

Back in Welridge, Candice was an oddity among her fellow classmates. Where most students would talk and play with their friends and keep them close, Candice would do very much the opposite. Contrary to her little sister, you would scarce see her with, talking or even interacting with anyone in the her school. More so, a reason was even harder to come by. Even the most lucky and the unprecedentedly tenacious could not pry an explanation out of her. It was even hard for her sister to get her to speak most of the time, but there were a couple of certainties about her.

For one, she was somewhat of a male magnet, as she was always very sought after by the boys at the school, who craved her good looks and great wealth. She turned down every single one – often with violence – which did the job well. As for the girls, they were very envious of every aspect of her, so often spread rumours about her throughout the school. This gave her the attributed nickname 'pussy priss', which still gets her tense every time she hears it to this day. The only person she could really trust was Natasha, but she often was at another's house over her own so she rarely got private time with her.

Candice once more perused the outside scenery. _Why would Elmore be any different?_ Stubbornly thought the feline.

* * *

"What about the school? Oh! Does it have a choir? I just need to know!" Zealously exclaimed Natasha, her appendages and dorsal fin flailing in the meanwhile.

"Someone's happy." Chimed Mr. Green

"Why wouldn't I be? We're moving to flippin' Elmore!" Shouted her daughter, which lead to the captain in the cockpit having to clutch his ears. Her father was always delighted at her adopted daughter's enthusiastic demeanour. It always seemed to put a smile on his face. Maybe that's why all the kids back at Welridge found her so likeable.

"It's just, aren't you scared to make new friends, go to a new school in a new house with new surroundings?" Questioned Mrs Green.

"That's the exciting part Mrs Mom!" Natasha answered with triumph. She then proceeded to make a dash towards the window, at the expense of Candice's comfort. She gripped the rim and tilted her head towards the bow of the plane. After a period of intense optical focus, she suddenly gasped, whipped around and yelled:

"I see it! We're here!"

* * *

"Uhh. . . Darwin, I don't think I wanna do this anymore." Nervously whimpered an azure, male, twelve year old cat, quivering his lip in terror from the high altitude he was currently situated at. Said cat is bipedal with long whiskers – and sports an ivory sweater with brown ends at the neck, sleeves and waist. He also wears a pair of genes atop a hilariously overinflated pelvis. At the moment, he was wearing protective equipment on all of his major joints, inclusive of his king-sized head, which had a green helmet atop it. And if you had a miniscule, vain hope that he was wearing socks or shoes – then your dreams have just been crushed. I mean, he's wearing rollerblades at least? That counts right?

"Come on Gumball! You have to do it! It's what the dare card says!" Shouted a tiger orange, male, ten year old goldfish, aimed towards the top of a huge, steep ramp made out of a myriad of garbage items, such as old TVs, cans and even a couple of rotting fruits, for the foundation. Meet Darwin Watterson, brother to Gumball Watterson, an aquatic creature that miraculously grew legs. These end in a pair of green and white sneakers, both having circular symbols at both their sides – the only attire present on the goldie. Regarding his backside, his tailfin branches out into three smaller, and more maneuverable sub-fins that are all bundled together. Relatively speaking, it is a bit on the short end. As a consequence of being a male, he additionally has one less eyelash on display compared to a female of a similar species.

"C—can't I just take a dodge card?" Gumball persuaded, toothily grinning as if to sway Darwin's demeanour. This however, only resulted in an angry look from Darwin, who was putting his hands on the sides of his head and was currently furrowing his brow.

"No man! You spent two hours making this dumpster ramp." Reminded the finned creature.

"Ok fine, there's no going back anyways. Well, I'm pretty sure I lived a decent life." Reluctantly said an ever-sarcastic Gumball. _Why does playing this game always seem to end up in near-death?_

He gulped after looking down once more at his backyard. After another whimper of terror he then proceeded to prepare himself – both emotionally and physically – amidst the distinct rocking of the impressively built structure. Just at that moment, he vertically sprang himself upwards into the Heavens – an amazing feet for such puny. . . well feet. The boy's skates landed on the slope of the ramp, and then he proceeded to accelerate unimaginably fast – to the point where there was a possibility of the wheels giving in to friction, much to Gumball's horror. Gumball, to put it bluntly, was terrified. His eyes were as wide as a door with broken hinges, his arms and legs were scrambling about attempting to keep balance and the boy was screaming throughout the entire performance. There was a brief realization three fifths into the ridiculous event that, just maybe; Gumball could pull this off successfully.

 _Not too far now!_ Thought a euphoric feline. But, life always has a way of making the most intimate things crumble before your very eyes. Less generally, the foundations of the ramp were becoming overexerted from the instability of the whole building, and as such they began to give way. This snowballed into the items above it, leading to the entire structure succumbing to the power of Earth's gravity. Without being aware of this, the surprised cat's face turned from a look of excitement to a look of regret as he tumbled downwards with the trash, eyes closed, arms upwards and screams intensified. This only lasted for several seconds until the cat was buried under a pile of trash. He then stuck his head betwixt the sea of filth, spat out a rotten banana peel, and was met face to face with the amused eyes of his companion.

"I told you we shouldn't have played dodge or dare." Scoffed the cocky fish. Gumball sighed in response.

"At least it can't get any worse than this." Gumball noted. Unfortunately for the pair, irony caught up to them.

"What was that noise?!" Ferociously yelled their mother from inside the house. Gumball and Darwin exchanged petrified glances, and then they attempted to clean up the zenith of all mess-ups. But nothing, no one, no thought nor action has, or can be, hidden from Mrs Watterson. Ever.

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 **Well, there you go. Now, there are probably tons of mistakes that I made in terms of spelling, plot, characters etcetera. I would really appreciate if you could point any of these out to me in the review section. I mean, without criticism, how does any writer improve?**

 **See you for the next chapter. I'm a bit oblivious to when that is going to be but, if the reviews are good, I'll have it out as soon as possible.**

 **CrOxxx.**


	2. A Blissful Glimpse

**Whelp, I'm back again, ready to indulge you in another chapter. First of all, I want to thank you all for the reviews. They have been ridiculously helpful, and I now know what to improve on. Some criticism for this chapter would be amazing. Don't be afraid that you'll discourage me - the only time I will get stop writing will be due to me, and me alone.**

 **I think I'll stop talking now.**

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"I didn't choose you. I just took one look at you, and then – there was just no turning back"

* * *

 _ **A Blissful Glimpse**_

After a smooth flight the Jet finally set its wheels on sweet, Elmorian ground, and rolled over the runaway in the meanwhile. The plane quickly decelerated and then remained stationary, while its doors opened to reveal an aquatic creature. Said aquatic creature then proceeded to exuberantly jump off the plane, primed with elation, and scored a perfect landing. Things could not have been better for Natasha. That was, until, she turned around to find her parents giving her a stare that had the power to melt glass. She instantly cowered in response.

"Natasha! Why couldn't you of taken the stairs?" Her mother shouted with a glimpse of rage. It wasn't because she hated her daughter, far from it, it's just the last thing she wanted on her conscious was her daughter being hurt first thing after the move.

"Sorry mom. Hey, is that a Jumbo Jet?!" Commented Natasha, who was already speeding off towards the vehicle. After a sigh of defeat and a chuckle, the two parents activated the automatic stairwell, picked up their suitcases and plodded down, towards the runaway. Candice trailed behind them. _What a lame airport._ She thought nonchalantly. As she turned, she picked up on her sister zooming around the airport, greeting almost every soul imaginable. Janitors, flight attendants, even passengers, you name it. With semi-circular eyes, she ignored the eventful southern side of the place and started sauntering north, where their taxi was supposed to be located. Candice did not want to go through the formalities or apparent 'awesomeness' (as Natasha put it) of the new surroundings, she just wanted to get accustomed to her new house. Again, she really didn't see the point. What was the reasoning behind absorbing the scenery of a place you'll only see once? Or twice if she ever goes on holiday.

Her parents quickly picked up on this and went in Candice's direction, literally having to pry her daughter off one of the captains. At least she had the decency to thank them for the flight, unlike some people. After a quick tip, they eventually got to the taxi, which was all ready for their arrival, conveniently for the Greens.

"Ah, hello Mr Green. Your daughter's already in the back seat." Said the driver. They turned for justification. _She could at least show some enthusiasm_ , mentally scolded the father. Previously, he never really got any time to converse with her young daughter, the feline almost always choosing to seclude herself in her room with a book, a piece of paper and a pen over play within the house. It worried him. All he wanted was her child to be happy. The circumstances were definitely in place, but he guessed she just didn't wish to capitalise. They all became situated in their respective seats, with the eldest at the front and the youngest at the back. _Hopefully things will change_ , Mr Green thought with faith.

* * *

"Honestly dude, the punishment could have been a lot worse." Said Darwin, as the pair trudged to the convenient store. The aforementioned punishment was to deliver some milk back to the house. Their mom – Nicole – snapped after she was told what the two were doing as she really hated that board game. Fortunately, Nicole was in a good mood or something similar, as she was a little light on her two children.

"This is still pretty bad. I mean, who gets milk on a Sunday?" Exclaimed Gumball. He still wore the roller skating equipment present during his incident. Seconds after the question was posed, a white, female ghost appeared around the corner, and caught sight of the two brothers.

"Hey guys!" She said, waving the milk carton in her hand in the meanwhile.

"Wassup Carrie."

"H—h—h—hey Carrie." Stuttered an anxious Darwin, who had a shade of red on his cheeks. This raised an eyebrow from Gumball.

"Not much, just fetching some milk."

"We're doing the same thing. It was a punishment from our mom."

"What'd you guys do this time?"

"We decided to play dodge or dare again. Not the best of ideas, as I ended up in the middle of a pile of trash."

"W—w—we tried to clean it up, b—but our m—m—mom caught us out."

"At least you weren't grounded." Giggled Carrie

"Yeah, I guess."

"Listen, I gotta go guys, but we can hang later on, bye Gumball." She said while casually floating away. After Gumball and Darwin waved for her departure, and set off for their own destination, Gumball turned to Darwin.

"Dude, is there something between you and Carrie? In which case, I'll need to know." Stated Gumball. He's seen this kind of behaviour from Darwin before, but never knew what provoked it.

"U-u-uhhh we had an embarrassing moment at a party this one time."

"Are you sure that's true? Wouldn't Carrie of stuttered as well?" Questioned Gumball. After a sigh of defeat from Gumball's perception, Darwin complied.

"Alright dude, I have a crush on her."

"Really? On Carrie? Well why don't you ever tell her?"

"That's the issue. She never has shown any signs of liking me back. I don't even think she knows I exist." Griped the fish, who was looking at the pavement, a frown displayed on his face. Truth be told, this undeniable fact has left Darwin in a sombre attitude recently. What is it about him that makes him so unnoticeable? Was it his shoes? His fins? Or the fact that he was a fish with legs? These questions constantly buzzed around Darwin's conscious and battered his brain. He even sometimes wondered if his long time crush, Carrie, even had Darwin cross her mind.

"I think it's just because you're shy, dude. You have tons of awesome qualities!" And with that, Gumball tenaciously rested his arm on Darwin. "You'll find love one day, I just know it. Just don't let it get to you." He finalised with a unilateral, empathetic smile.

"Thanks bro" Said Darwin. The smile seemed to emanate, and elicited a singular one from Darwin. What would he do without Gumball. He was the most compassionate person he knew – never ceasing to help Darwin out as a result of his misfortunes. Darwin began to recall the time when Miss Simian gave him his first detention. It was heart wrenching for the goldie – and it made him qualm in fear at the thought. But, once Gumball got word, he proceeded to break the condescending chimpanzee's mug, and quickly comforted his brother in the classroom after school.

"No problem" Scoffed Gumball, still reposing his content smile.

* * *

The driver stuck his key in, placed his feet on the gas and the taxi was off. Being on a seemingly unlimited fuel supply, Natasha engrossed herself with a quickly thought up game.

"Hey Candice, let's play eye spy! I'll go first, I spy with my li-" She was quickly cut off by an agitated Candice.

"Natasha, please, I really don't feel like playing right now." Candice stated with a quiet tone. Natasha's gaze softened a bit, and she quickly grew concerned for her sister and her attitude.

"Come on Candice, there must be something that will cheer you up." Natasha said.

"Not really, unless you can teleport me to our house." Candice said with an implicit, almost pristine clarity that she didn't want to continue. Natasha wasn't one for analysis, however.

"Can I at least see a smile?" Natasha questioned, with glitter in her eyes.

Candice's lips did not move a centimetre, which earned a sigh from Natasha. This was the lifestyle she always lived. Was there anything she could involve her in? She just wanted her sister to reciprocate her outlook, not be the polar opposite to it. She always snuck this kind of encouragement back home, but it always ended up in vanity. She was curious if they were even friends sometimes. It's an uplifting thought though – seeing Candice chuckle in her friend circle, Candice racing with her in the fields, Candice shopping with her in the mall. . . It's all she really wanted.

The fish didn't let it get to her though – she never does – and sporadically attempted to play the game with her parents.

"Hey Mr Dad, Mrs Mom, can we play Eye-spy?" She gleefully asked; to which they responded;

"Sure honey." This earned a "Yay!" From Natasha.

Candice continued to lay back in her long seat and observed the town that was currently flying past, not being distracted by anything else other that. She figured that there might be some important things she would need to remember, such as places to shop, where the school is, etcetera. After a couple of minutes of unobtrusive sight-seeing, she finally saw something that wasn't fence and homes. Rather, a procession of a small group of elderly men and women, each one with a milk carton in their hand. They seemed. . . Off to the cat. One was a broken patch from what seemed like a kilt, the other a green broccoli with a purse and another looked to be a mouse – with the biggest ears she ever saw. She didn't get to see the fourth. _Strange. . ._ Noted Candice. Most of the residents back home were animals, synonymous with her own acquired appearance. You can imagine her incredulous look when she saw the next character – also with milk in hand.

 _A ghost? Seriously? Also, what is this town's obsession with milk? If I catch one more person holding milk, I'll begin to questio-_ But she was cut off short, when she suddenly spotted a cat – an azure one, who was additionally accompanied by an orange gold fish. He seemed to be comforting the fish, as they both shared an identical smile. But she only seemed to focus on the older looking boy. He was wearing roller skater equipment, and had a face that seemed to irradiate his entire personality. Joyous, upbeat yet quite chill at the same time. It was only a second, but that was more than enough to leave her speechless. . . Well more than she already was.

 _Who was that?_ Was the main question on her mind. Moreover, why was she so concerned? Was it the (extrinsic) familiarities they both had? No, it was something much deeper. When she saw him, she swore her heart skipped a beat. It was just something about him that completely flipped her demeanour upside down. Her mouth was agape, and her head was rotated towards the back of the taxi, hoping to glance at him just one last time. Her mind went into overdrive. She managed to deduce so much about him just with his short presence, such as what kind of person he could be and how he acts. But how? And _why_? He seemed so. . . different, an aberration to what she was used to, almost.

"Candice? Are you alright?" Asked her mother. Candice turned and replied.

"It's nothing" Before crossing her arms, in deep thought. She now somehow found an insatiable drive to meet that boy again. She almost felt as if it was necessary.

* * *

The taxi finally arrived at the family's destination. A swift payment was made, and the Greens began to stand there, taking in the visual excellence of their house.

"What do you guys think?" Said the parents. Natasha felt like her tongue was ripped from her mouth, as she couldn't find the words to properly express her initial excitement.

"I—I—I—I l—love it!" She finally exclaimed, and quickly bear hugged her two parents.

"It's alright I guess." Candice said, and then quickly went back to contemplating the previous events. Natasha then sprinted off towards the grounds of the mansion. The place was huge – it looked like it could accommodate fifty people, and was painted white, with a large hallway in the centre that spilt into parts that contained the other rooms to the left and right – each one with a grand window. The garden, located on the outside, was littered with roses and daffodils – and hosted a large fountain in the middle.

The family went inside, and immediately they all gasped, bar one. There were chandeliers, red carpets, winding staircases, and just about anything else you'd expect from this type of building. _Well at least it is a bit nicer than our other mansion_ , thought Candice. They all began to unpack in their respective rooms, with Candice finishing first. Her room had a queen sized, veiled bed with a desk on the right. A large window was placed on the wall opposite the door.

Her father appeared at the doorway.

"We've set you up to go to school tomorrow, it's a place called Elmore Junior High. We decided against picking the private schools as there aren't too many around here" Chuckled Mr Green.

"Okay." She replied, with a bored tone. Soon after her father left, Candice finished setting up her supplies she needed to study on her desk. The room began to turn dark. _Better get to bed, don't want to be late._ And with that, she changed into her nightly wear, and pulled the covers over herself. Before she succumbed to sleep, her mind trailed back to the boy. _I wonder what his name is._

* * *

 **Hopefully, this was better than the last one. I'd like to thank you all for the initial support, it is really encouraging. I wish that you all stick around; I've got some big plans for this story. Thank you all.**

 **Also, Merry Christmas if any of you are reading on December 25th.**

 **CrOxxx.**


	3. A Sudden Hope

**Hello all. I guess I should start off by mentioning the support. Thank you for the abundant views in the last chapter. You guys are legends. I welcome all the new people who have come to this page, ready to read another chapter. I hope you enjoy it.**

 **I desperately need some opinions on the new cover image. Do you think it's fitting, or nay? Be honest. I'm honestly not sure if I like it myself. It was really easy to make, so the quality is likely insufficient. Let me know.**

 **Also, I could really use some more reviews, so please do so if you can.**

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"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is to love and be loved in return"

* * *

 _ **A Sudden Hope**_

Sun streams protruded into Candice's room, and shone on her candy red face, causing her to groan loudly. Afterwards, her eyelids slowly but surely widened, and she was met by her grand window. This prompted her to undo the covers encompassing her, sit on the edge of the mattress for a while and then step out of bed. _Well, time for school_ , the feline thought. Candice was indifferent to school – she knew it was compulsory and beneficial, but she couldn't get over the strenuous focus and the monotonous nature of education. Her attitude to it mainly consisted of "do it now, and thank yourself later", which she was content with. After she went to the shower and put on her polo shirt and grey skirt, she ate breakfast, and headed towards her parents' car – all the while strained by drowsiness. A voice coming towards her became apparent.

"Hey Candice!" She saw her sister walking towards her, wearing her usual attire. Candice merely waved in response. "Are you excited for school?"

"Sure, I guess." Candice responded. The reply was mainly due to respect for her sister, and to not make the situation more awkward than it actually was. More truthfully, she was in between. Natasha then, without warning, rapidly dispelled all the things she was "excited" for to the cat, with most of these having very small intervals between them. As such, it became impossible to discern what the heck she was saying. Candice somehow managed to interpret some words, such as "friends", "English" and "choir". She wondered why Natasha isn't choking from the lack of breathing. She guessed that it had something to do with her being a fish, and as such she doesn't have lungs. _Wait that doesn't make sense. . ._

Her parents quickly saved her – and possibly Natasha – from the inscrutable speech.

"Come on girls, let's get in the car"

* * *

"Well, time to go to boring old school again."

"Yup."

Meanwhile, at the bus stop just outside the Wattersons' residence, Gumball and Darwin were waiting for their mode of transportation to arrive, accompanied by their little sister, dubbed Anais, who was a small, pink rabbit. The resemblance between the siblings is. . . Questionable to say the least. The brothers were chattering amongst themselves.

"I just don't understand how Pi can be a Greek letter and a pastry at the same time. I mean, why can't it just pick one?" Questioned Gumball.

"Maybe we'll find out when we're older."

"But that's what they all say!" And with that, their bus stopped in front of them. Anais was cringing at her brothers when they stepped onto the bus; everything they said just made her wonder: _Why am I related to these guys. . ._

The older pair spotted a seat at the back of the bus, and quickly started to trod towards it, albeit slowly, as they were assaulted with a copious amount of greetings.

"Hey Gumball!" Said by penny, who was at the front of the bus.

"Hi Penny."

"Wassup Darwin!" Chimed Tobias, attempting to show swagger, but it ultimately just came off as pretence.

"Sup Tobias!"

"Good morning Gumball." Alan greeted.

"Hello Alan." Two seats behind, Carrie stopped looking out the window and turned to welcome the boys.

"Hey Darwin."

"Oh! Sup. Wait! I—I—I m—mean hi C—Carrie" Mumbled Darwin. After the two became seated, Gumball put on a smile. This was one of happiness and contentment – he was glad he had so many great friends, or at least people who liked him. Darwin, however, was visually contrasting his outlook – with the goldie's eyes trailing downwards, the same frown from yesterday present on his face. Gumball decided not to mention it, as it looked like a problem that should be tackled by individual contemplation alone. He was already occupied in conservation with Banana Joe, anyways.

 _She managed to talk so casually. . . Yet I couldn't even decide on a word_ , mentally scolded Darwin. The thought proved one of Darwin's worst fears; that the affection is completely one-sided, and as such there was no indication that Carrie even remotely had a crush on him. This only added more evidence to grow Darwin's tribulation. Furthermore, Darwin then realized that there were seldom any moments where any attraction towards him was implied, by any girl. _Maybe I should stop trying anyways. . . I mean, who would like a poor, bright orange, basically naked, lame, dumb, weak, insecure, boring fish. . . With legs. I'm a nobody._ Darwin stayed in his position for the remainder of the journey, his frown exemplified.

The bus found its way to its destination – Elmore Junior High. It wasn't the most prestigious school around, but nobody in Elmore really complained. As Roald Dahl once said: "Any school is better than no school". . . Or something along those lines.

So the bus's passengers dispersed into the school, and it didn't take long for the bell to ring, conveying that lessons have started. Their initial teacher for the day was Miss Simian – a truly despicable and odious creature, who would regularly give out punishments for the most miniscule of wrongdoings. A little known fact was that she is actually a superfluous teacher. Millennia of experience in a profession will do that to you.

Most of the characters from the bus became settled in their respective seats – with Gumball sitting at the front, and Darwin finding solace in the back corner. He wanted to be in recluse for now – he really wasn't feeling like doing anything after his previous pessimistic notions. He'd rather just block himself out to the world and assimilate his thoughts – just for today.

"Alright, quiet down now. I can see you all look much focused today, so I'll be able to catch any. . . slackers!" She shouted, and then instantaneously jerked her head in front of Gumball, who was already dozing off. Immediately he straightened his body and eyelids as if his life depended on it, which to the boy, it did. _Typical Watterson._

"But before I make any of those people miserable, I'd like to introduce two new pupils. They're sisters." She informed, and then two girls appeared in the room. You probably know who they are.

* * *

 _OMG, people!_ Was Natasha's first reaction, while her legs were springing upwards and downwards like hammer drills, her teeth was clamped against her bottom lip and her hands were rubbing against her cheeks. Needless to say, she had energy written all over her body and excitement welled up inside her.

 _Of course the boys are staring at me. . ._ Was her sister's reaction, as she rolled her eyes in agitation. Nobody could really blame her – she did seem like the quintessential 'hot' girl at first look. She really hated these introductions – they always seemed unnecessary. If they wanted to know her name so badly then they could just listen to the register.

"Please tell the class your n-"

"I'm Natasha! But you can call me Tash!" The fish boomed, making everyone flinch in surprise.

"My name is Candice" Formally said the cat.

After a period of reverting her eyes from all the boys that were staring at her and trailing her vision rightward, she almost immediately became shocked, but tried her best not to show it. _I—I—It's that boy from the taxi!_ This was thought with almost inordinate euphoria, as if she was extremely lucky and glad that she was going to be with him for her school years. Forcefully, she attempted to not stare directly at him like a creep, while still keeping him in her peripheral vision, a task that proved to be very difficult. Still, she managed to see that he looked pretty much the same as when she first saw him, just without his roller skating equipment, and for some reason he was trembling. She couldn't see if he was looking at her, however. She mentally slapped herself for worrying about this. _Why am I so insistent on this guy?_ And with that, she re-calibrated, and focused on the rest of the class and what her baboon teacher was saying.

 _Huh. . . She looks very similar to me._ Perceived Gumball, as he continued to stare at the girl, despite the lack of cognizance from Candice. He really couldn't take his eyes off her, for some strange reason. He decided to simply dismiss her after a while.

"Yes. .. Well Natasha you can sit in the empty seat in the middle." To which she spontaneously complied, seen in the seat faster than you can say. . . Well any one syllable word, really. "Candice you can sit in the empty seat in the front, next to Gumball." S _o that's his name. . . It seems to just roll off the tongue._

Normally, Candice would be very reluctant and aggravated to sit at the front, as she despised the additional attention. But she was feeling far from her regular self. She did so with almost. . . Relief? _What is up with me today?_ The lesson didn't go too smoothly for the baboon, as she continuously had to silence her chattering students, but to no avail, as nearly everyone in the class was involved. The focus of the talkative class was primarily centred on Natasha, who was already taking this opportunity to make as many new friends as possible. Her conservations she had were mainly provoked through questions, such as: "Did you move here?", "Do you like it here?" and "Where can I get your fringe?". It would be better not to ask who said that last one. Natasha felt like she was in dreamland. She was actually pretty sad when she had to leave all of her friends from Welridge; she cherished all the moments she had with every single one. Now, she was – essentially – making them all back, and she could not wait for all of the experiences she would have with everyone talking to her right now. This was the first step for her, and she couldn't say it could have gone better. Besides Darwin, who was not attentive to any of the events going on around him, a female cat was the only other person not indulged in the fray, as she was focused on the table in front of her amidst the noisy environment – scribbling down notes when she deemed it was appropriate. Candice was the only one in the classroom that was actually paying attention. She made a commitment to herself to concentrate during lesson time, as it was vital to her academic excellence. Many people back in Welridge wondered why she worked so hard in lesson. It was unusual at this year and strange for any kid in general. Her conduct may be commendable to some, not to others, yet she couldn't care less.

But in spite of that, in between the note-taking she couldn't help but catch multiple glances to Gumball sitting next to her, who was facing away, engrossed in the main conversation. Every time she would do so, temptation just to say one thing to him always managed to tug at her nerves; "Hi". Oddly enough, this was always followed with great reluctance and nervousness. This simple statement seemed to plunge Candice into great distress and yet she couldn't decipher why. Why was she was so insistent on greeting this one person, in comparison to some other kid adjacent to her? Was it due to proximity? Procrastination? Possibly not to seem rude or to fit in? This was one of the few turmoils that Candice could not solve. Her enquiry seemed to stem from seemingly thin air; there was nothing evoking this kind of behaviour back in her old town. In fact, she grew a distaste to boys in general, so what was is about him? Who was 'him', and why was she concerned? Eventually, Candice determined that the questions should be pushed into the back of her mind, as she couldn't get distracted. But this was easier said than done.

* * *

As quickly as it started, the break bell rang, but Miss Simian was not done with her 'miscreants'.

"Before you miscreants go, I need to assign the statutory peers for the new students. For those of you that forgot, this peer is randomly selected and will accompany Natasha and Candice throughout the day, and show them around the school." Everyone in the class seemed very anticipated for this – possibly so they could spend some more time conversing with Natasha or flirting with Candice. Candice did not like how this sounded already. She just hoped she wouldn't have to talk to them at all. Natasha, of course, being the Yang to Candice's Yin, was ecstatic at the thought. She then got out a paper and read out the names.

"Okay. . . Umm. . . Masami will be Candice's peer and Darwin will be Natasha's. I hope you two do well in welcoming them." And with that, Masami, a petite, floating cloud with holes mimicking facial orifices, escorted Candice out the classroom, with Candice just wanting the ordeal to be over and done with. Everyone else followed suit.

Natasha, who was staying behind, couldn't remember anyone she talked to named Darwin, so she had to confront the teacher.

"Miss, who's Darwin?"

"He's sitting over there." To which she pointed to the back end of the classroom. Darwin didn't even register that the bell had gone and that everyone had left, as he was in deep debate. She walked over to him. _Wow! Another fish with legs!_

Darwin still retained his state of depression, the thoughts about his features still nagging at the fish. Unwilling to do anything, he merely sighed, and returned to his mental sleep. That was, until, he received a tap on the right side of his face. Somehow, this snapped him out of his trance, and the fish began to feel shock and umbrage to the person who dare disturb him. It all instantly vanished when he turned his head.

"Are you Darwin?" questioned Natasha, as she held at a hand, waiting to be shaken.

There was no response, as all of the boy's senses became transfixed on the girl in front of him. The world seemed to fade away, and all that was left was him and her. She was a fish with legs – just like Darwin, but she had shimmering turquoise scales instead of his boring orange ones. She also had a distinctive dorsal fin that trailed over her right eye like a fringe – the likes of which Darwin found profoundly attractive. Everything else about her seemed identical to him – the same height, the same eyes, the same legs. . . Everything! It all seemed like, against all odds and probabilities, the two were right next to each other, in the same classroom. Yet, a key difference was that she looked way better than anything else Darwin could dream of. He couldn't place a finger on why. She just seemed to have this vibe to her. . . Something that seemed to cause his heart to dance in dreamland. Darwin's cheeks then became red as roses, his heart drummed against the walls of his chest – almost causing his desk to shake – and he started to undergo a concerning, warm sensation inside of his body – something that carried all the fervour for it to be special and amazing. All this, and he didn't even know her name. _Woah. . ._

"Ummm, hello? My name's Natasha!" She said, blissfully unaware of the effect her presence was having on the goldie. Darwin, again, managed to break out of his daydreaming, but he had no idea what to say to her. He decided to start off with the generic.

"H—h—h—hello!" He attempted to exclaim. _Wow, great first impressions you dumbo._ He half-expected her to scoff in disgust, but to his surprise she giggled. Rather cutely, Darwin thought.

"You're funny! Hey, so are you gonna show me around the school?"

"W—w—what?"

"You're my peer! According to the teacher, you have to!"

"I—I—I do—o?"

"Yes! Come one!" Said Natasha, who tenaciously gripped Darwin's wrist, and dragged him off to the hallways. This only caused Darwin's blush to worsen, threatening to turn a dark shade of scarlet.

"I have so many questions!" Finished Natasha. Miss Simian dully took another sip of her coffee. _Finally they left. After Millenniums of teaching, I still can't hope to understand children. . ._

* * *

 **Thank you if you read this far. I decided to make this chapter a bit longer for you guys (emphasis on a bit). Do not fret; I have tons of ideas for my next chapter, so hopefully the word count will gradually increase. Maybe then I'll actually hit the three thousand mark. . . Furthermore, it should be out a bit quicker than the last two.**

 **Make sure you leave your opinions on this chapter and the cover image in the review section. Hope this wasn't a waste of your time XD.**

 **CrOxxx.**


	4. An Endless Intrigue

**Yeah. . . I kind of murdered the cover image. I began to realise how dumb and clickbaity it was XD. I hope that relieves some of you.**

 **Got a bit of a longer chapter this time around and it also picks off from where we left off. The chapter will detail the rest of the crazy events that go on for the remainder of the day. I wish that you enjoy it.**

* * *

"If a drop of rain falls for each time you pass my thoughts, it will be raining forever"

* * *

 ** _An Endless Intrigue_**

Masami directed Candice down the leftmost hallway when leaving the classroom, the two walking side by side to the other end; everyone else made their way to the playground. The sentient cloud had no place in particular interest in mind when guiding her around the school, to which Candice was oblivious of. She merely assumed she was taking her somewhere of relative importance. At least, that's what she hoped she would do.

"So, I heard that you and that fish sister of yours have moved here from Welridge." Candice immediately picked up on the way she spoke. It seemed as if she had a patronizing tone – almost treating Candice as if she was her subordinate. She pondered if she did this to others.

"Yes, it was because of a business opportunity."

"Which I am all too aware of. You're daughter of Luke Green, right?"

"Yes. . . How do you know that?"

"My father, the owner of the rainbow factory, has joint his company with your father's. So we will be seeing each other a lot more. Our dads are currently some of the most powerful people in this town. Really quite fortunate we are, aren't we?" Stated the cloud. This was the last sentence that was uttered for a straight ten seconds. Afterwards:

"So, how do you like the school so far?"

"It seems alright."

"Really? Could you elaborate?"

"Well, I think Miss Simian is better than any teacher I've ever met."

"On the contrary for most people."

"I think they just don't understand." Said she. The cat hadn't faced Masami since they walked out the classroom. She had hoped that this would insinuate her unwillingness to converse, but nothing of the sort was understood by Masami. Her smile grew.

"Candice, I think we'll make a good companionship. While everyone in the school is my friend, I never really was willing to bond with any of them. I mean, why should you and I ever need them – none of them had the same, shall we say, decorum as you and I." She said, followed by a chuckle. _Who does this girl think she is?_ She thought, her face transitioning into a contemptuous expression.

"I only really have them to keep my reputation up; they couldn't hope to achieve the prosperity that you and I share. Together, Candice, I think we will dominate this school." Posed Masami. Candice became absolutely baffled. Why was she assuming that Candice shared her outlook, over abhorring it? Her condescending demeanour really got Candice riled up – she can't be allowed to act like this! Truth be told, Candice was extremely wealthy, but she wouldn't even think about acting in this way. Her eyebrows were threatening to criss-cross.

"Really, we could do anything together, couldn't we? I can't wait to get to know you! What's your favourite brand of dress? I only really buy-"

"Listen, I'm only with you so I can find my way around, so can you please cut it out? I am not the person you think I am." An aggravated cat said, literally on the precipice of shouting.

"Well, don't need to be so rude about it."

"What about yourself? You can't treat other people like this just because you have money!" Masami gasped.

"I am shocked that you would think that about me!"

"Well news flash, I do." Masami groaned.

"Ugh, what is with you, can't we just be acquainted?"

"I think this conservation was all the acquaintance I need." This earned a perplexed look from Masami.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I would never want to befriend someone as stuck-up as you!" At this point, the two have stopped walking, and were both glaring each other at very close range, each on the verge of snapping. The air was thicker than honey badger fur. Masami spoke first.

"You know what? Fine, if you apparently don't want to be near me, I guess you don't need my guidance around the school! See you later, Candice Green!" And with that, Masami cumbersomely floated away, her white surface swiftly turned into a dark, menacing grey.

Candice mumbled to herself quietly, and then found a bench she could use to wait for her next lesson, the girl not wanting to get lost in the hallways. Strangely, the cat changed back to her usual uninterested expression right after the lump of condensation left. She was left apathetic to what she – or possibly her – just did. In fact, she was actually a smidge glad that she left, along with the opportunity to form an intimate relationship with one of the most awful calibres of people; especially as quickly as it did occur. It was almost impressive. Candice had a belief that she always adheres to, which states that social situations are always the worst situations. She just can't stand being around others, something bad, without failure, always happens. Solitaire was what Candice preferred more often than not, and she was pretty stubborn on that viewpoint. While her actions towards the cloud were somewhat justifiable, the main issue that she still felt uneasy over were the potential consequences.

* * *

Darwin's arm felt like it was being ripped straight out of its tendons – the fish performing such acts not refraining in the slightest – Natasha rather whizzing down the hallway with his new compadre in tow. Inadvertently and somewhat naïvely, Natasha seemed like the guide in the operation – while possessing no directional knowledge of her environment. Her orange reflection was dumbfounded at what he got himself into. He simply refused to believe that he was the one meant to give this new, really cute student a tour around the entire school. At this rate, his entire face was at a danger of changing permanently rosy red. Darwin after a while, started to think that the Universe contrived against him, as his escorting wasn't well executed.

"So, where's the library?"

"I—It's uummm—"

"How big is it?!"

"I—I'd say moder—"

"Are the librarians nice?!"

"W—well—"

"Oh! Does it have any romance novels? I just love those!" Darwin didn't bother responding; partly because he knew what the outcome would be, and partly because he couldn't relate at all.

"I'll check later. Oh yeah! Where are the bathrooms?"

"T—to our right."

"Is that the gym? It looks so cool!"

"Yeah, I—I agree."

"I know right? Woah!" She said just as the two skidded to a stop, and were presented by a wall.

"Heh, I guess I wasn't looking where I was going. I'll go a bit slower this time." And with that, the two leisurely paced backwards to the next corridor. Natasha gave a more open question for Darwin to take a shot at, her hand still firmly gripped on his.

"So, do you like it here, Darwin?" It was at this point that Darwin's timidity decided to exercise its prevalence over Darwin. What could he say in response? I mean, he didn't like the lessons because most of them were with Miss Simian, but he did quite like break and lunch with his friends and the clubs are pretty cool as well. _Oh! I'll say that._

"W—well, I do lik—"

"Wait, is that where the choir is held?!"

"Yes. W—what I was trying to s—say is that—" His trail of speech was halted, as panic started to settle in its place. _I completely forgot what I was going to say!_ Natasha, unbeknownst to her interruption, stopped and spun her head around to face her peer.

"Are you okay? We still have tonnes more too see!" Natasha burst out with, and resumed running down the next hallway with pure, reignited alacrity – exhilarated to see more of what the school held.

The gold fish was quite discontent with the how the ordeal was going so far. It wasn't Natasha's fault, the blame can be attributed to the modicum of confidence Darwin actually possessed. He never was too good at talking to anyone new or any girls, so the combination just made it a shipwreck. Often times, He had hoped that he would at least be able to uphold a conversation for a reasonable amount of time – but presently – he couldn't even initiate one. He was just lucky that Natasha maintained her boundless fascination to the entire school. Darwin wasn't nearly as excited in his first year here. Swiftly after a multitude of incessant queries followed by inopportune answers, they sat on a hallway bench, both exhausted from the excessive dashing. _Phew, I'm tired out!_ Natasha's hand never really left Darwin's, and after several or so breaths, the goldie realised this, and blushed profusely. Natasha wasn't aware. Another query snapped him out of his dozing. This time, it wasn't focused on the building.

"Darwin, can we be friends?" Natasha had turned for this, and stared at Darwin with sincerity. Partaking in this simple yet powerful question never felt obliging to the other people she met in the hour she had been here, but with Darwin, it felt like just that. Darwin was left shocked. He couldn't think of saying no – he made no arrangements to hurting a newbie – yet, it was so hard to say the correct answer. How would she interpret it? Presuming he did say yes, would that mean they would start hanging out more? That simple scenario already left Darwin flushed more so than he was, and it became incredibly hard to utter a word – exacerbated by her adorable smile. Sweat was beading down his forehead, as moment after moment past, and the question still lingered.

"S—s—s—sure, I would l—l—love to!"

"Yippee!" Exulted Natasha, as she squeezed the boy senseless.

"I can tell this is the start of something great! Just think of it – two fishes being the best of friends! It's like some sort of TV Show!" Natasha's grin became unparalleled and her eyes were blissfully closed, savouring in the great moment. Natasha always felt as if friends were the most important things in one's life – so she couldn't help but have a reaction of such relief. Yet, taking that into account, she was maybe hugging him a bit too hard. _Meh, he won't choke or anything._

"I—I—I can't b—breathe!" Darwin vainly confirmed. The hugger loosened a bit, but wasn't planning to stop. His body froze. In his head, there was no possible way any other message could leave his lips. He had never felt so deprived of all his thoughts and reason in one foul swoop. _She's hugging me!_ He thought incredulously, the boy sweating bullets, his eyes wavering and his cumulative blush deepening. Nothing seemed to matter anymore, time and space were meaningless, all that seemed to exist for him was this moment, and this moment alone. He didn't care about the provocation, he didn't care about the intention, he didn't care about the stigma, he just cared about how long it would last, yet, he also wanted it to end, as it was the most embarrassing thing that could ever happen to him, rivalled by the reveal of his baby pictures. The feeling from the classroom came back – but it came back surging – the result making Darwin feel warm, cosy, _happy_. It was all simply. . . Amazing.

All this, in just six seconds, as the bell's unwelcome ringing greeted everyone's ears, causing Natasha to finish her friendly gesture. It was nothing of the sort to Darwin, however.

* * *

The proceeding lessons flew by for the pupils and their next priority was lunch; arguably the best time of the day. In accordance to everyone else, Gumball, Darwin, Natasha and Candice all made their way to the canteen. The group, excluding Candice, then headed at the centre table with their food – after a pitiful attempt of Darwin trying to explain how to order to her female counterpart, with every other utterance being barraged with intensive stuttering. They all became seated and started to talk.

"Hi! I'm Natasha."

"The name's Gumball."

"Cool name!" Gumball chuckled.

"Thanks. Aren't you the newbie that Darwin's meant to show around the school?" Darwin subtly looked away.

"That's me!"

"Did you know he's my brother?"

"Really?" Eventually, other people started to join the three, and quickly the table held six or seven people.

Exempt from everyone else, Candice can be found in the last table in the bottom row of the canteen, eating the contents of her tray with a fork. She decided on mash potatoes and sausages for today, along with some baked beans on the side – just enough to satiate her appetite. There was no one sitting next to her – most genuinely not noticing her as the region was subconsciously dismissed by the majority. The rest decided to be in the presence of her sister, her peer who bared a stark resemblance to her, and Gumball. Just thinking about that name widened her eyes. She raised her head from her melancholy table and brought them to another, in the centre of the canteen.

She saw him, and she saw nothing else. He was currently resting his forearm next to his tray, with a smile plastered on his face. That same smile. His eyes were still full of life from her past observations; fully open and sparkling from the lamps above. She knew the effect was cat specific but. . . They still seemed to be more than that to Candice. The best way she could portray them is by comparing them to a teddy bear – consoling, reassuring, precious. . . Almost like they were telling her that they would make sure nothing went wrong. His orange fish friend's cryptic words elicited a heartfelt laugh from him. The laughter then became pervasive – causing everyone on the table to share a chuckle in response. The effect was so pervasive that it induced an uncharacteristic giggle from Candice, the red cat studying him with a trance-like expression, two hands rested on her chin. _He's so. . ._ Although, the noise didn't pass Gumball's senses, and he was swift to seek the source. His eyes landed on the second new student from before. After a jolt and an audible halt of breath, she promptly spun her head to the window adjacent to her. _Hmmm. . ._

"Hey Natasha?" She faced the feline.

"What is it?"

"Isn't that your sister over there?" Gumball questioned, and then beckoned Natasha's eyes over to the bottom right table, still desolate, other than a certain cat, who had her back turned to them.

"Oh yeah, she is! Her name is Candice. She doesn't like to talk much. She doesn't really like going near anyone for that matter."

"Not even you?"

"Well, sometimes, but she usually likes being on her own."

"Is she shy?" Natasha placed a hand on her chin, and her eyes redirected themselves to the ceiling above. Five seconds passed.

"I don't think so, she just prefers being on her own." And with that, Natasha turned back to Bobert, who asked her of her opinion of the state of the global economy. Expectantly, Natasha was clueless.

 _So she likes to be alone. . ._ the feline apprehended, staring at her with nothing short of intrigue. The girl did show semblance of these traits – no one was sitting next to her, probably due to her own causation. In fact, Gumball had heard nothing from the girl throughout the day, very much opposing her sister's behaviour. He found the idea perplexing. Isolation didn't seem like the ideal state for any person, yet, it was a proclivity to many. He started to ponder – did she self-impose it, or was it done without conscious choice? The more Gumball seemed to enquire the notion, the greater his concern for the girl grew, and Gumball, after a while, began to build sympathy for her.

Meanwhile, Candice swore she was on the verge of collapse, the embarrassment weighing on her like an elephant. Somehow, her face became more red than it already was, being instantly wrought by acute blushing – heating up strongly in the process. The only thing she could see was the faded window. _Why did I do that?!_ One moment, she was absentmindedly perusing the boy, for no discernible reason, and the next moment, she was in eye contact with him! _He's going to think I'm a creep now. . ._ She thought dreadfully. But that lead her onto another point. Why was she doing it in the first place? Why did she care about his face, his smile, his stunning eyes. . . _Argh! I'm doing it again! What is it about this boy?_ It seemed like she was tied to him by some ethereal rope, tugging them together, or something similar, as she could not get him away from her at all! In third and fourth period, during which she remained situated next to Gumball, there was not a single note take, not a single thought, not even a single answer that wasn't influenced by him. And yet, she still knew nothing about him. What if he was a secret criminal? Why couldn't she rationalise this, like she does with most of her issues? She thought maybe she could, so she then turned her head to look at him again. . .

. . . To find he was looking right at her.

Both gasped, both whipped their head to their right, and both had blood rush to their cheeks – one of them much more preponderant comparatively.

 _I'm never going to catch a break with this guy. . ._ Realised Candice, dreadfully.

 _Ooops. . ._ Gumball scolded, the boy in even more wonderment as to why he was blushing.

* * *

The final bell of the day rang, after an awful fifth period, and the school doors opened to spew out a large collection of students – all eager to get out of the blasted place. The sisters were walking down the stairs leading to the pavement – the more cheerful of the two waving behind her towards her fellow students, all acknowledging her departure by waving as well. They both turned to their left and shortly afterwards they found their car, with their parents inside. They got inside and drove off.

"So, how was your first day, girls?" Her father spoke. He intended it to be directed at both his daughters – but he only got one response.

"It was great! I made loads of new friends!" Natasha said, followed by a gleeful smile.

"What about you Candice?" Questioned her mother.

"It was alright, I guess." Candice, somewhat clichély, responded with. The car drove in the opposite direction to their house.

"Why are we driving away from our house?" Asked Candice.

"We decided to head towards the park after school. It's a good opportunity to meet some new people." Candice grimaced at the notion, but at least it will give her an opportunity to provide clearance to her mind. Hastily, the car arrived at the park, and everyone went past the entrance after getting out of their automotive.

Even Candice was impressed by the sight, mostly because of its apparent vastness. She couldn't really estimate its specific size – as stretched out towards the horizon. The park grounds primarily consisted of grass – all a vibrant bright green hue and very well maintained, with not a single patch devoid of the plant, except for where the various structures were within the park, and the stone slab pavement, which started from the entrance and twisted and turned throughout the place – all halting to a stop at a landmark or other area of significance. Every hundred metres of the pathway contained a bench. She could also make out a playground, a football field, a lake, a tennis court and, further out from her vision, what seemed to be a river. Additionally, the region of land seemed a tad unstable, as the entrance was place on a hill – so the altitude of the park slowly decreases further out. Most notably, a wide span of forest encompassed the other end of park, and was outgrown to the point that the stretched beyond the border of the place – the partly dense collation of trees being almost entirely pine, and as such the extent boasted a basil green colour. Curiously, she could just make out a shade of purple towards the visible end of the forest. The front of the park expanse was bordered by a grey wall.

Most of the family was taken aback by what they were seeing. The area seemed very invigorating yet quite mellow at the same time. All decided on heading towards the playground to their left; they figured that's where most of the people would to be, to which they were correct upon arrival.

"Hey Natasha, over here!" Shouted Penny, who was also there with most of the guppie's newly formed friends! She gasped in response.

"H—hi guys!" But, just before she could speed off towards the crowd, a voice was heard behind them, one none of them recognised.

"Oh, are you the new family Gumball has been telling us about?" Candice's blood froze after hearing that name, and she became much more alert as opposed to apathetic. _H—h—he's here? Again?_ Feeling compelled to confirm, she spun around, followed by her entire family.

They saw Gumball, Darwin and Anais, just as you would expect, but they also found two much taller people standing next to them – one of which being a rather big, male, pink rabbit, who was wearing a white suit emblazoned with a brown tie. The other was a female blue cat wearing a white polo shirt and grey skirt – along with a rainbow coloured badge perched up on her shirt.

Candice could not tell were her thoughts were at. On the on hand, she found this ridiculous that he was here, out of all locals in Elmore, with her, at the same time! It did not seem to agree with the laws of chance and rationale, as well as grinding all of Candice's hope of easing her thoughts with the boy into dust. But still, on the other, she could not feel any frustration with the occurance. As strange as it were, she had a premonition that this would happen, and how it arose was beyond her.

"Oh! Yes we are. I'm Luke; this is Elizabeth, this one's Natasha and this one's Candice, although your children probably already know them."

"I'm Nicole and this is Richard."

"Hello!" Richard chimed.

"So, what brings you to the park?" Nicole asked.

"Well, we wanted to meet some new people, but you seemed to of made the task much easier." Joked Elizabeth, to which Nicole giggled. Luke picked up on the badge Nicole was posing.

"Hey, do you work for the rainbow factory?"

"Yes I do, need to feed the kids right?"

"Well Nicole, you're speaking to the new owner of your company."

"Oh! Did you kick Mr Yoshida out of office?"

"No, simply merged with him."

"Guess we'll be seeing each other more often." The adults chuckled at this. The kids, on the other hand, were dying from awkwardness. Fortunately for them, Richard noticed this.

"How about we let the children go for now, honey?" The feline turned to look at them, and then she became embarrassed by her mistake.

"I think we should Richard. Anais, Gumball and Darwin I want you to all be back at 4:30 okay?" All three couldn't be happier to comply.

"The same goes for you Candice and Natasha." The two nodded in acknowledgement. Natasha, Darwin, Gumball and Anais paced towards the equipment, and joined their friends in the fun. Opposed to the idea, Candice once again found solace in sitting down on the intimate bench. She was more of an observer than a participant anyway.

The girl bore a flippant set of half-closed eyes, with hands draped to her sides and her legs stacked on top of each other. She saw her sister on the monkey bars with her friends, and she looked like she was having fun. Not much else was notable beyond that. She turned to find something else worth consideration, and found Darwin (that was the name Natasha said to her in fifth period) was on the round-a-bout with what seemed to be a potato, a cactus and. . . Him. The boy that was causing her so much trouble as of late was boasting a similar countenance to Natasha, and was audibly displaying it to, an exhilarated "Whhoooo!" Escaping his lips. She smiled as a response, but almost immediately tried to withhold the action. The last thing she wanted was a replay of the events in the canteen. A blush formed at the recollection. She wondered if her interest in this boy would ever cease. Candice had almost entirely had given up on trying to deduce why she had this incessant obsession with this cat. . . At least for the day. The fact had left Candice wholly disquieted during fifth period, but she tried to dismiss it as much as possible. Still, she couldn't help but feel that something about this boy was different, some aura seemed to make him stand out, some type of future prospect involving him; it was there. She knew it was there, but the specifics were completely over her head, so she just resumed taking the view of the park and its inhabitants, putting her at ease. _Maybe I'm going too deep into this. . ._

* * *

 **Sure hope you all liked the extra amount of words! Waayyy past the target I set in the last chapter XD. I didn't really receive any formal complaint, but in comparison to some other fics mine just started to seem. . . Puny, I guess.**

 **I decided to incorporate some scenarios I've been in or imagined before into this chapter. This will be a reoccurring theme throughout the story. Hopefully you like them!**

 **I think I'll stop wasting your life now, thanks for the read! Make sure you leave a review, and see you in the next one!**

 **CrOxxx.**


	5. An Unfading Smile

**OMG I'M SOWWYYY!**

 **I know I've kept you all waiting wwaayy too long XD. Please don't abandon me! I promise this chapter is good!**

 **It's a lot longer than my previous one, and I also decided to change up my writing style slightly. No more pretence! Let me know how you think it is in the review section. So far, the quantity and quality keeps going up with every chapter. At least, that's what I tell myself.**

 **To address anymore concerns, no I have not died (XD), and no I have not lost interest in writing this. I still have buckets loads of ideas left for this story. Let's just say I was a bit. . . Preoccupied with something.**

 **. . .**

 **. . .**

 **. . .**

 **I'm sure all of you are like "Really? THAT'S IT! You're not even gonna tell us?" Well, let's just say it's a bit. . . Dumb XD. Nothing to be concerned of or something inappropriate. If you really want to know, PM me XD.**

 **I guess you could also say that I put too much detail into this chapter. The perfectionist inside of me could not be stopped, so I apologise for that XD.**

 **Let's get to it! I know you're gonna like this one. I CAN READ YOUR MIND.**

* * *

"Love is that condition in which the happiness of another is essential to your own"

* * *

 ** _An Unfading Smile_**

Friday greeted the town of Elmore with friendly welcome, to which the town and its denizens returned without hesitation. Well, mostly.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

"Mnnn. . ."

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

"Ugh, argh. . ."

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

"Argh!"

Gumball couldn't take it any longer. It was way more than he could bear. The boy, still with eyes shut, extended his arm as far as it would let him to his left, made it hover over his wooden desk, and then, with early-morning ferocity, slammed it down repeatedly like a hammer; the excruciating sound from the act shaking the very foundations of his quaint home – striking the birds clean of their morning song and causing them to fearfully fly off the roof – and guaranteed an initial aggravation for all the people living within from the abrupt and rude wake-up. It may be arguable if it was more pleasing to the ears then the relentless buzzing of the alarm clock, but if you are in agreement with the latter, then the electronic device was more than taken care of, and likely won't be used again for at least a week – Gumball managing to crack the screen and leave an irrevocable dent in the aluminium plating. The feline then nonchalantly retracted his appendage, and then stretched towards the sky. His eyes opened themselves.

"Aaaahhh. . . Happy Friday buddy." Proceeded by a strong yawn. He looked outwards from his bed roof, expecting to find his brother up and brisk – but instead was met by the drowsy and ticked-off glares of his entire family, all clumped together in his room and sported disappointed frowns with hands on their hips.

"Gumball! What have you done so early in the morning?!"

"I was dreaming about daisy the donkey until you ruined it!"

"You almost broke my fish bowl with that noise!"

"It's gonna take me a year to fix that clock!" What? I did say at least.

All became indecipherable after that – each individual complaint being drowned by the seven others following after. Propriety was thrown out the window and in its place, chaos and contempt took over. One after another the Wattersons' managed to crush Gumball with a tidal wave of vehement accusations, with such rapidity that Gumball was forced to place his hands in front of him and close his eyes for protection from the boiling water being spewed right at his face. Their arms were flailing about incoherently – reflective of the words coming out their mouth. What a morning this was for Gumball. Amidst the sea of animosity, the alleged culprit managed to ask a question that left the four simply shocked.

"What did I do?" Gumball said with surprising sincerity, rubbing his eyes as if the whole incident had flew past his head. The four had their angered gestures frozen in space – and their expressions changed to ones of confusion. Nicole spoke first.

"Wait, you don't know?" Gumball then reciprocated the look of his family.

"Noo. . .?" Darwin raised a brow.

"So you didn't hear that?"

"Hear what?" The whole family became even more perplexed.

"The alarm clock, you broke it?"

". . . I did?" _Okay, they're starting to freak me out._ He turned for justification, and found the alarm clock deliberately smashed – all evidence pointing towards a certain someone pounding the thing to pieces. He was the closest, but something still vexed him.

"But, how did I break it without knowing?" All the family were lost in great musing. It seemed like the affair ensuing the dreadful noise had vanished. Richard suddenly gasped.

"Ghosts!" He shouted with great panic. Acting on innate impulse, everyone then desperately bit their lips and widened their eyes – terrified if Richard's explanation was in any way true. Granted, the hypothesis wasn't veracious in the slightest, but they needed something to ease their distressed minds after witnessing something so uncanny. But before they could all start sweating, Anais took charge of the circumstances, and stepped forward with her donkey doll in tow.

"It's not that." Everyone began staring at the bunny attentively. If anyone could solve a problem, it would be her.

"Gumball must have just been half-awake when he did it. Often people do things subconsciously when they're asleep but don't remember any of it when they wake up. That's what sleepwalking is." Relief washed over the Wattersons, as they all sighed in unison. Without the four year old, it was only a matter of days until a catastrophe would take place. They almost relied on the girl too much – her ability to rationalise has saved the family, whose idiocy was somewhat fascinating at times, countless moments in the past and likely far into the future.

Speaking of which. . .

"Uuummm, what's the time?" Questioned Gumball.

* * *

"Gumball, get out of the shower! We have three minutes to get to the bus!" Shouted Anais from outside the bathroom, all the while pounding the door. Similarly, Darwin was right behind her, boasting the same strained expression, within proximity of their father, who was frantically running around the hallways in search of their children's school equipment. But Nicole was suffering the worst downstairs – the cat practically jerking her cereal box from one end of the table to the other, and then repeating the action, which made the kitchen table seem like it had just recovered from a robbery imposed by a breakfast fanatic, and barely escaping with three bowls quarter-of-the-way filled.

"Kids! The breakfast is ready!"

"Hold on, we need to take a shower first!"

"But the bus is going to be here in two minutes!"

"We'll just take your car then!"

"But then I'll be late for work!"

"I can't find the pencil cases! I think they ran away!"

The house then became rampant with myriad shouting and arguments, every member seemingly not listening to what the others had to say. They became so entranced by proving that their point was correct and indisputable, that Gumball inconspicuously managed to exit from his cleansing with relative ease, the boy not affected in the slightest by the chaotic morning. Actually, he couldn't have found it more humorous. He realised long before anyone else that they weren't making any progress by shouting, and seeing the value in not arriving agonizingly late, it became apparent that he should treat the situation as a normal morning – a hilarious one at that. A smile formed on his lips as he began putting on his clothes for the day. It wasn't a rare occurrence in the slightest; yet, Gumball savoured these oddities for what they were worth. From someone's viewpont, even though this situation harboured a trifle of interesting traits, Gumball still managed to extract out the good aspects of it nonetheless, and, through the feline's inquisitiveness, the boy found wonderment in the concept that just from his brutal actions to his alarm clock – havoc seemingly became natural in its appearance. _What was that called again? The butterfly effect or something?_

Eventually, the entire family was able to change into their respective clothes (the majority being unable to take showers), eat an unsatisfying breakfast, carry all the things they needed to school/work on their shoulders, and set off towards their family car. They all forgot to check the time.

* * *

"Red Blood Cells do not have a nucleus. Can anyone tell me why?" Shortly after, Candice's arm shot up, and a worn, hairy finger pointed towards her.

"Candice?"

"It is so they have more room for haemoglobin, a molecule that bonds to oxygen and releases it to the body. This makes red blood cells more specialised for their function."

"Excellent." Her eyes scanned the room.

"I am now going to draw a diagram of a red blood cell. I expect all of you to copy it into your book." Miss Simian then got her chalk in hand, and stuck her tongue to the side of her lips. She brought the chalk up to the blackboard, and began meticulously drawing the outline of the cell, leaving no imprecision in her strokes or lines when constructing. More detail was further put into the contents of the cell, and just as Candice rightly stated, she began plotting haemoglobin almost everywhere in the organism.

The cat didn't require any inclination to perform her classwork, and swiftly began to draw her diagram in her book. Unbeknownst to her, the rest of the class were closely eying the girl, with the reception mainly consisting of great bewilderment. Who was this new student, to know the answer to a question that no one had the willingness, nor knowledge of even having vain attempt to answer beforehand? There they were, blocking their minds out to the world, stuck with the indifference of the whole lesson, and yet, someone completely foreign broke that stigma without reluctance or hesitance. To say they were surprised was an understatement, but the girl carried off so calmly.

Just as the ape teacher was about to finalise the intricacies of her work, the sudden clambering of shoe-wear was heard throughout the corridor just outside, and not even a second later, the entrance to the room was abruptly slammed open with a jounce – and two boys blurred into the front of the classroom. They were visually exhausted. Both were gasping for breath, respiring on their foreheads and placing their hands on their knees, as if they had just finished a military training exercise. Miss Simian had almost immediately instructed her limbs to tense up in protection – her hands acting as a barrier through shocking impulse and even though it was just Gumball and Darwin, their fellow classmates bore the same incredulousness as their teacher. The room was stuck like this for several seconds, panting being the only noise being delivered to anyone's eardrums – all up until the blue one spoke.

"Are we—*pant*—on time?" Penny, his fellow classmate sitting at the front, stretched her cheeks and breathed in, seemingly embarrassed.

". . . Not really." She began to rub the back of her neck and her eyes wavered to the boys' side. Upon seeing this, their tiredness was thrown out the window, and abject terror struck the both of them. They slowly raised their heads, with all semblance of foreboding anticipation, and their expectations could not have been met better – as Miss Simian had her arms crossed tightly and held a glare that conspicuously screamed infuriation.

"Where have you two been?!" The two boys flinched, and then turned to each other, both of them locked in a silent game of 'bagsy not me'. That, or they were finding an excuse to not open their airways.

"Hhhmmm?!" Once again flinching, the two fortunately realised that they weren't achieving anything by being quiet. Unfortunately, the two realised this at the same time.

"Well you see—"

"Ummm, we kind of—"

"—things happened and—"

"—it was early in the morning and everything—"

"—it was weird to us as well—"

"—I may of hit my alarm clock—"

"—the noise was awful—"

"—really hard—"

"—and we were really shocked—"

"—and confused—"

They both finished with:

"—so that's why were late." And then they sported huge, toothy grins, hoping empathy would sway their teacher, but in reality unamusement was the only thing that was really on her mind.

"That's not a proper excuse for being twenty minutes late!" Vociferated Miss Simian, and in response, boldly, Gumball countered.

"But the bus also left without us, and our mom needed to get to work. We ran as fast as we could, we swear!" The ape concentrated her burning gaze towards Gumball. She heard what he said, but nothing was said about her listening.

"First you break my mug. . . And then you answer back?!" Furious at this point, she stuck her finger right at his face.

"You deserve an after-school detention, beginning today! And as for the both of you, if I ever see you late again, I'll begin to consider inclusion! Now get to your seats!"

Darwin scrambled to the other side of the room, almost tripping several times, and when he got there we slammed his tailfin on his chair. Begrudgingly, Gumball took the less sporadic approach and walked to his seat with tensed arms at his sides. He sat and sighed with a hint of agitation. The teacher resumed her lesson, and began to detail what her diagram represents to the class.

 _Wow. . . That was a bit harsh._ It was all peculiar to her. She even stopped what she was doing to stare at the somewhat grouchy soul sitting next to her. The story seemed like it was taken out of thin air, not within the confines of normality, and told to a very strict and dubious teacher, but Gumball still tenacious held onto his supposed narrative – and got punished for it. That was probably the starkest thing she got out of this. Sure, there was the obvious imposition of the incident right in the middle of her lesson and just the eccentricity of the story in general, but she didn't have much awareness of those when it occurred – the girl preferring to keep her focus on the boy. And yet, taking all of that into account, she couldn't help but feel an overwhelming pity for him. _Why do I care. . . He came in late, it's his fault._ Her inner mind couldn't have repudiated the notion more.

* * *

Natasha could see how blatant Darwin's embarrassment was – his attempts to cover it futile through Natasha's eyes and gut-feeling. Firstly, there was the dysfunctional (and to Natasha, somewhat adorable) movement shown when he was instructed to go to his seat, the more obvious hands covering his eyes, but also the hardly viewable redness splattered all over his face. Natasha wasn't too far away from the fish to see this – about a knight's move away from his location in the corner. Her gaze softened. She didn't know much of the boy; it was only recently did he accept her impromptu friend request, and at the moment, she was unsure of the terms they were on. Despite all of that, Natasha knew that this was the last thing the boy wanted imposed on him. That's all she cared about. That was all the predilection she needed. When her friend was down, she was down and vice versa. And so, she began to muse. _Hmmm. .. What could I do to cheer him up?_ Was what she thought over and over again. _Should I tell him that joke I learned yesterday? No he probably won't get it. . . Oh! How about that!_

She performed a 360° spin around the room, making sure to keep a close eye if Miss Simian was liberating everyone's attention. The teacher was doing a terrible job at it, but everyone was asleep or switched off anyways, which would do finely. Once the fish was certain, she flipped open her biology book, steadily ripped a blank page from it with stringent carefulness from the long edge, and began to get to work. _Okay. . . Take the two corners like that. . . Put them in the middle. . . Fold in half, that and this. . . Done!_ She brought her creation up to her eyes to admire it. _I think this paper plane will be good enough._ She gripped onto the bottom of origami, and aimed the front towards Darwin. Thoughts ran through her mind. This moment was paramount – she had to be very exact with how she does this, or else everything could turn into dismay. When she felt as if she was ready, just at that moment, she flung her wrist limberly yet forcefully in the boy's direction, the plane slicing through the air, and managed to hit the perfect spot on his forehead with little sound as a by-product. He didn't budge. _Darn! I'll need to try something else. . ._

He thought, possibly hoped that, this morning couldn't get any worse. He was unbelievably wrong sometimes. Really, he should have expected it – these incidents always evolved into seven others, all much more disconcerting, and in the process, making the initial one redundant additionally. Specifically, simply having everyone staring and condemning him for his mishaps and hijinks was enough to leave Darwin in a state of harrowing. _What are they gonna think of me now?! That I'm some kind of troublemaker, probably. How did this happen. . . If we didn't stand around in Gumball's room like bimbos, none of this would have occurred! I hate getting punished. . ._ Just as he was keeping to his dreadful thoughts, he felt what seemed like poking at his side. He turned slightly but not wholly, and had one eye looking at Banana Joe.

"Psst, Darwin!" He started. Darwin was befuddled with his intention, but if he had to guess, he would say it was about how stupid he was to come to school twenty minutes late.

"I—I—I know, I need to come in earlier and stuff like that." The fruit flourished his arms in dismissiveness.

"No, no! I was told from someone else to tell you that. . . Umm. . ." Natasha, a short distance away, face palmed. Joe turned to her for help. Natasha attempted to compromise, and pointed towards Miss Simian, and just afterwards, performed a degrading monkey gesture – her eyes turning googily and her arms performing the classic chest-pounding so associated with apes these days.

"Ahh!" He realised, and turned back to Darwin.

"I just wanted to say don't you think Miss Simian's strictness is very beneficial to all of us?" Darwin raised a brow, very bewildered at this point.

"Umm. . . Sure, I agree." And with that, he returned his face back into the comfort of his arms, not wanting to get even more confused at this point. Joe smiled in accomplishment, but Natasha threw up her arms in vanity and shock. Her head fell onto her desk, the girl very demotivated at this point. No one really noticed, all still in stupor. _Maybe I should try to do it outside of the classroom._

* * *

The class was relieved when the bell, after what seemed like the end of time, rang – and most of the students sprinted out for break. Darwin patiently waited from his seat for everyone to leave, and once they all did, he approached the door. It was just then that he realised that Miss Simian was still in the room, so he quickened his pace, just escaping the ever-present awkwardness that occurs when a student and his/her teacher are in the classroom, alone – especially after she shouted at him. The boy was still incredibly flushed – the heat on his face still very much prevalent, and as he was walking down the corridor absentmindedly, he knew at that point that this would never heal – both socially and mentally.

"BOO!" Darwin was shoved right out of his senses, and he tumbled backwards onto the floor – his tailfin landing with a thud. _W-w-what?_ He was so stupefied that it took him a couple of moments to assimilate what just happened, and then he heard the unmistakeable sound of loud laughter.

"Ahahaha! You—*hah*—totally—*hah*—fell. . . Backwards!" Natasha couldn't help herself – she fell to the floor as well, and started chortling in pure mirth at the reaction. For another observer, the scare didn't seem too amusing, but to Natasha, it was the epitome of funniness. It didn't take long for tears to start pouring out of her eyes; the girl flat on her back at and howling towards the sky. Her limbs were flailing about due to the great excitement that was felt from pranking her recently founded friend – with such effectiveness as well.

The prankee was dumbfounded at her.

"W—w—why would you jump out at me like that?" Natasha quieted a little, still giggling slightly as she spoke.

"I—It's b—because you were—*haha*—so embarassed t—that—*ha*—I'd thought I could—*ha*—cheer you up!" The two stared at each other for a bit, Darwin's mouth still agape, before Natasha resumed her heart—felt laughter.

Darwin, after staring for a bit, had his expression change, and his face was half-filled with a massive smile. He then burst out with laughter of his own, and joined Natasha on the floor with the loud chortling. They were just so smitten by the act (which occurred half a minute ago. . .) as well as by their friend's own guffawing that they just couldn't stop! The hallways were peaked with the cheerful noise, and eventually, it could be heard from the outside playground.

Natasha maintained it for ages, but Darwin stopped and sat up for a bit. His smile transitioned into a huge grin, and the blush came back on his face. Being the second time Natasha had completely flipped his disposition on its head, even if she wasn't formally her friend, he still couldn't have been gladder that she was here; with him. _This was just what I needed. . . Thank you Natasha._

* * *

The afternoon came on gracefully to the town. The sky was clear and devoid of clouds; a pleasant turquoise was encompassing the expanse and the Sun hung with it. It too was brisk – the omnipresent light offset slightly overhead, sporting a blinding white colour, and was wrapping everyone smart enough to go outside with a warm blanket of assurance.

Regarding the Greens' manor, the only source of activity can be found within Candice's room. Through the large, open-curtain window, the girl is seen sat on her desk, legs on top of one another, and fully concentrated on the task presented in front – her face plain but her right arm very much active, simple questions on the sheet responded by her furiously writing down extended answers filled with words; each one looked superfluous all the same. The constant scribbling of pen sounded excessive at times yet necessary to Candice as she preserved her conduct continuously for another minute, and after adding one more full stop, she held up her work in content. _Hhhmmm. . . Good!_ A while passed. _Wow, I might have written a tad too much for just this biology homework. . . Whatever, at least I won't have to write much for my notes on this topic now._

She reposed the paper to her bag, and then folded her arms – just sitting there, staring at her desk.

. . .

. . .

. . .

 _Wow I'm bored_ , realised she. All her work, both statutory and extra, was finished and her entire family was out of the house. She didn't ask where they went. Not like they were going to provide much for her, anyways. Her comfortability with her position started to set in. Maybe the relaxation was what she needed. Considering she just went through a likely very significant moment in her life – moving from the town she had lived in for twelve years to another she's barely heard of – as well as the very monotonous nature of the transportation in general, she couldn't be blamed for just wanting to sit for a while – assimilating her thoughts. Her mind brought her back to anything else salient that had taken place recently. Immediately, Gumball propped up. Seeing him at the taxi. Sitting next to him in class. Witnessing him eyeing her in the canteen. It all came flooding back to her at once. It seemed as if he was pervasive in her life, and yet, not at all. She hadn't even formally met him or greeted herself, heck, he probably merely saw her as a newbie, but she couldn't simply shake off the fact that he had the biggest impact on her when moving. It was undeniable – schoolwork was hard to do with him sitting next to her, and her incessant obligation to greet herself had become annoying at times. It seemed as if her attitude had. . . _adjusted_ with him around. And still, this was only during a very small span of time. She had long let go with trying to discern why, so she halted her thoughts just then.

. . .

. . .

. . .

Her mind became a slate – yearning for stimulation. She turned to look outside, and was struck by how great the day looked. _We'd never get this kind of weather back in Welridge!_ She thought. Pondering for a moment: _Well I'm all done with my work, and there's not too much to do. . . I may as well take a trip outdoors. Hopefully I'll be able to find my way around; I can't take the paths I learned in Welridge. I'll have to find a new one_ – she was solitary but not sedentary.

 _But where do I go?_

. . .

. . .

. . .

 _How about there._

* * *

The sky still retained its cheery turquoise hue, clouds being few and far between, and with the Sun still present overhead but with child-like giggling and excitement filling the air – all loud and exuberant and care-free. The park expanse was littered with kids – in close accompaniment of their parents – either sprinting about the grasslands devoid of worry whilst chasing down their friends, scrambling on the monkey bars and rocking rather dangerously on the spring-rides, playing a game of hide-and-seek near the lake's edge or even taking a picnic with their dads and moms; some even finding respite in simply sitting on a bench and basking in the glorious rays of the Sun. Needless to say, this was quite a proactive day for Elmore, and the park was very much reflective of this. All seemed very lively.

Candice intended to do the same, but it hard to do so from the entrance of the park, as opposed to the children who were gripped firmly by their mothers' who were leaving the extent; everyone exuded somewhat profuse enjoyment. She grinned in complete mirth, as she was reminded about her not-to-distant younger self. _Those parents must have a handful!_ She thought, and due to some level of obliviousness, some level of curiosity, she turned, and witnessed something. A boy, who seemed to be a bear cub of sorts, was racing about the fields with his apparent friends – reveling and giggling all the while – when out of a special childish incaution, he tripped up onto the ground. Bravely, he stood up, but began wailing as he held his grazed knee. Before any of his friends took notice, his mother was already next to his baby, and then she started to pick him up on her back and rubbed him very gently and meaningfully. The boy's tears died down slowly – and he was left asleep with a smile present on his face.

 _It seems worth it though_ , she thought – her grin now completely justified and brimming with jubilance and a slither of relief. Out of sudden, her tail began to wag back and forth incessantly, and her eyes grew wide. _This again? Come on, stop it!_ Some people were staring, obviously bewildered, and she became very flustered, and this quickly turned into panic. She couldn't let anyone see her like this! Still, she tried to remain calm, but it was pretty hard when nothing she had no idea what this was or how to stop it. All she could really do was wait for it to die down. The quirk was always annoying but it was mostly embarrassing – the behaviour always seeming to seep in whenever she felt these kinds of emotions, and it did seem quite visually ridiculous when contrasted by her usual apathetic appearance. As more befuddled people walked past, deciding it was best to not mention it, the tail didn't see any signs of stopping.

And so, she left it. Instead, her eyes landed on the forest further off from the park. The wide array of basil pine trees stood tall and prideful from the far edge of the park – almost feeling foreboding to Candice. Yet, at the same time, she felt like she was being cordially invited towards it; the Sun positioned right behind the section of the park, and, through the beams reflecting off the spring leaves, a viridescent, glowing display was being ignited off the place like a set of blazing arms that were ushering a hug. Candice gasped, and felt like it was truly a sight to behold. Nature always had its way of generating magnificence such as this. The leaves, the dewdrops and, of course, the Sun all were placed in such a way that made the sight truly memorable. It all seemed so fascinating to her; seemingly unlinked things aggregating to provide her with this gloriousness, and it seemed as if what she was seeing in front of her was intended for her, and only her – almost a gift that she should relish in. And yet, it wasn't as if she went on a lifelong search for it – it just came with patience, not reward. So she did just that, and her senses were blotted out, her face dazed and her eyes, somewhat dangerously, dividing their full attention on what she was seeing. _That's so cool!_ She thought – her mouth slightly ajar and her arms stretched out at her sides. Her fur was becoming encapsulated in warmth by the second; her tail accelerated in its swinging, and she really felt as though she was at peace. Time passed, and the glow began shooting off in every direction as the Sun moved down, seemingly quite quickly, and as it kept moving to the inevitable horizon the beams, now mere streaks, were becoming very concentrated in a blinding green. And as quickly as the display started, it stopped, and the sky turned dark.

The park attendant came up to Candice.

"Hey? Kid!"

"Huh! What! What happened?" She almost toppled over due to shock, but quickly tried to regain her composure.

"You were standing there for like an hour!"

". . . Really?" She said, feeling slightly embarrassed and shocked at the same time.

"The park's about to close down. You should be gettin' home." Candice's expression grew.

"Gladly!" She said with a giggle, and then she pranced leisurely out of the park. The attendant raised a brow.

"Why's she so happy?" He questioned, and then got to work with picking up the litter.

Meanwhile, Candice was skipping back to her house from the pavement, trying to control her emotions. But how could she? How could she simply let go, after seeing something so unnaturally beautiful, yet, caused by nature herself? Really, that's what was so cool about it. Knowing how it all worked was a current priority for her. _So the Sun's light was refracted from the moisturised surface of the leaves. . . Which then found its way to my eyes!_ She thought, mostly content but trying to contain her excitement. It became all the more with her new knowledge. It almost felt as if it was a present that life gave to her – a kindle just for her. Some obligation within her wanted to thank someone for it, but there wasn't anyone to talk to, so she just left it at that. Still, she couldn't shake off this empty feeling she still had. _I think it's better if I just kept this to myself._ And with that, she opened the gates to her house, and went to her door, still retaining her ever-present grin.

* * *

 **I'll be honest; pretty much none of the things I wanted to include in this chapter made it XD. I guess that's the beauty of writing, am I right? Still, I achieved what I intended to achieve when writing, so this chapter wasn't a complete loss.**

 **I'm being sincere when I say this chapter was long in the making from my last update to present. I was just a tad slow. Well, okay, maybe not a tad, more like unacceptably slow.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed that. I'll try to make my update schedule more regular, but unfortunately no promises. Just know I won't forget about you guys.**

 **Leave your reviews in the review section (shocking, I know XD), and I'll see you all next time.**

 **CrOxxx.**


	6. An Unavoidable Impact

**What's that? You wanted a new chapter? How about one that is more than double the length of the last one? Yup, I think that'd do it.**

 **Soooo I think I should elucidate on my absence, hopefully as concisely as possible. It was more of a problem with my psychology that I wasn't able to update this story as quickly as I would have wanted. A couple of months back, I a strange sort of. . . apathy towards the things I used to find enjoyable. I'm not sure if it was due to a faltering happiness or some other complicated issue, but I just found that I had not much of a will do things. . . writing included. I don't believe it's a problem to be concerned with, as I think I'm slowly overcoming it (evident by the chapter update – hooray!) but I can only see the future of this story and its updates with hazy eyes. . .**

 **Sorry to leave you with more uncertainty.**

 **But let's forget about that and enjoy the chapter that will ensue! I put ample effort into it as I knew I have left you all yearning or even frustrated with me, and I fully intend to reconcile.**

 **Note that, as this was written over the span of a couple of months, the writing style changes drastically throughout. In fact, you might be able to pick out my mood when writing at various stages. I would REALLY love a review to see at what point you prefer the story – at the start, or at the end.**

 **It might take you two sessions to get through this chapter, so. . . grab a snack, I guess.**

 **See you at the ending author's note!**

* * *

 **Oh yeah, if you're looking for more romance in the Pokémon fandom, check out my recent story, called "What The Heart Wants". It only has a prologue atm, but I hope it will become something as great as this story. Keep on the lookout!**

* * *

"As I got lost into your amazing eyes, I knew, for the first time in my life, that it was because of fate that we met."

* * *

 ** _An Unavoidable Impact_**

It was the next day, Saturday, and, through general consensus, one of the best; the day that signifies the point of broken restraints imposed by school, and, for some, work; the period that marks the beginning of ceaseless possibilities; that ushers in the start of the weekend – ushering in something new.

Something new.

Faster than can be accounted for (or narrated. . .), Candice was already present in her own bathroom, closely connected by her bedroom, scrubbing her feline fangs with her yellow brush – all of which mystified beneath the toothpaste foam spread broadly across her lips. After she zealously got all around her regularly visible canines and between the nooks and crannies of what remained, she sucked up a modest amount of tap water, playfully gurgled, and then spat out the contents of her mouth – unveiling her gleaming smile – and then sauntered to her bedroom. It hadn't left her face since yesterday, as if it was painted on like a piece of artwork, and the artist responsible being Mother Nature.

Yesterday came off as quite acute to the cat. She went on walks before in her old town. In fact, it was one of her favourite past times; the simple act of stepping outside, and then stepping to wherever your heart desires, was, to Candice, the epitome of tranquillity. It seemed as if whatever dreadful experiences you had previous were pushed into the back of the mind like an owl in the daylight, never to be remembered again, and you are left to absorb the scenery around you, and the entire environment so unnoticed before becomes seamlessly accentuated. But even then, she never caught anything like what she found yesterday.

It was like a lifelong search coming to an end – and she was left to admire the green sun streams glowing off the forest with something like thankfulness in her gaze, and this made her giddy the next day just thinking about it. Maybe she found the sight a smidge too breath-taking. But how could anyone else not? It was beautiful to the eye, and even more so when thinking about the creation – the aggregation of its conditions and circumstances. If the Sun was anywhere else or it had not rained the sometime before, Candice would not be beaming right at this very moment. She didn't remember seeing many people that were as amazed as she was.

But that brought her onto another, quite perplexing, notion – did anyone else experience it with her? She knew that there were definitely people near the gate, and, judging by how the light was refracted, Candice discerned that people even near the bottom of the park should have been able to at least catch a glimpse of the event from its angle.

She pondered this as she put on her clothes for the day, her bedroom being lit up from the golden sunrise – the chandelier sparkling from the glow, and revealed her queen-sized bed, study desk, marble floor placed beneath her royal red carpet, and, of course, her grand window.

It was known that many of the parents were distracted by their kids – and the kids were distracted by their parent's obstinateness when attempting to whine their way back to the park. So it would have been pretty difficult to spot the lights, as awe-inspiring as they were, but that didn't exclude the people down below the park who were trying to relax by taking in the mellowness of the wide expanse, the likes of which certainly wouldn't have passed up an experience like the one Candice saw.

 _But still. . ._ There was the possibility that the light only refracted in the right way to Candice's position in the park. She knew, quite veraciously, many concepts in optics (as well as many other fields in Physics), such as refraction, and drawing on her initial knowledge, it wasn't crazy to think that only she was able to see it from the way she was standing in the park. However, thinking about it further, she was still (from her rather hazy memory) able to remember that she could see the light viridescent from the time the Sun was high in the sky to when it was consumed by the horizon, when the park was closed, so it seemed as if the angle you look at the light had a very minute effect on its colouring, likely because the forest was quite far away.

 _Never mind that then. . ._ Thought Candice, who came to the conclusion that everyone was able to see the light. But even then, there was one more explanation. There always is. Maybe everyone was awe-struck. Maybe she was just so entranced by witnessing the glorious display that she was not attentive to the people around her. So, as unlikely as it may seem, she simply didn't notice anyone else looking at the sunlight with the same boundless captivity as she had. _Well. . . taking that all into account, I think I was the only one standing there until the park was about to close. . ._

She shook her head free of those thoughts. She had to focus on the day. And with that, once she had her usual attire adorned, she began to organize her priorities. She already had breakfast, and obviously put her daily wear on, so what was there to do next?

She gazed out her window, and saw that the Sun had replaced her previous, lime clothes with a wonderful new dress of golden orange – and was boasting it to the people of Elmore. And so, to gain a better appreciation, with the sunlight unveiling the grin that was on her face, Candice trod to her window.

However, with a peculiar premonition telling her to do otherwise, she turned to her study desk. Immediately she was smitten with surprise – her body shocking slightly and an audible gasp striking out from her lips.

Calming, she approached her desk, with her hands touching her waist, and began to scan through her books. _Algebra. . . Calculus. . . Biology. . . Chemistry. . . Modern Hi- wait. . . She took a double take. Hmmm. . ._ Her brow furrowed, and she became seized with utmost perplexity. She always tried to organize her books whenever they were in use, and she came up with something resembling a sorting system. It was always maths first, then the sciences – always in alphabetical order of each field. Following on from that, her Physics book should have been right after her Chemistry book. Scrambling, she took a closer look. Still the same result. She thought that maybe it was misplaced, so her eyes reverted themselves to the right of the shelf above her study desk. The book was not present.

Crossing her arms, she looked back, attempting to remember where it went off to. _I haven't used it yet. . . I was preoccupied with the other subjects I usually study. . ._ Physics was always a passion of hers – all the sciences and mathematics were – but she felt like she neglected the other subjects she should also be looking at alongside, such as modern history, so she left Physics for another time. She scheduled the session to take place today.

It took a bit longer, but she eventually gasped once again, and then let off a small sigh. _I left it back in Welridge didn't I. . . Now I won't be able to do Physics today. . . Possibly ever! How did I not notice until now?_ She got slightly frustrated with herself, and balled her hands, but then she sighed once again, and turned back to her reason – like she always does.

 _Well. . . It's a pretty popular book, I'm sure the library has a copy._ She brought her right forearm to her eyes, showing the brown and gold watch attached to it. It read 7:23 AM. _I guess I could pick it up in a couple of hours. The library doesn't open until 10:00 AM._

The library was actually in her school. It was open even after school hours, probably because of how huge it must of been for just one High School, so it was public use on the weekend – the wide assortment of knowledge not wanting to be confined to just the students' eyes.

Turning back to the dazzling sunrise to her left, the view invigorating and partly filling her with determination, she started the opposite way soon after, gripped her doorknob and flung it open. She bounded through the doorframe, and slowly closed the wooden structure behind her, a creak noise showing its ugliness as she left.

* * *

Slowly rearing the door to Gumball's bedroom open, Richard, in his underwear and robe, peaked inside. Discovering that no one was awake, with mischief written legibly all over his face, he plodded to the side of Gumball's bed. He was in peaceful slumber at the moment, but after assessing at his sleeping complexion, brimming with anticipation, Richard was excited to exude that this would not be for long. And so, with a colossal swallow of breath:

"BBBBBBBBBBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPP!"

The words crashed into the once asleep body, flung open his eyelids, and forced Gumball's face straight to the floor – his limbs incoherently sprawled all around, and his mind in absolute shambles. He had a flight-or-fight response hot on his cat instincts, yet, with his position (or rather, reposition), he would be incapable of even lifting a limb.

With a moan narrowly escaping his lips, he tried to find comfort with his new position – the carpet feeling very warm today. . .

 _Wait. . . What?_ Gumball mentally muttered, setting his mind on for just a fragmentation of a moment, then off again. _Whatever, it's so comfy. . . Since when did I sleep head first?_ The thought seemed to finally jolt him awake, which lead him to realise that this was no bed he would ever sleep in – but would definitely want to.

"Good morning Gumball!" Richard said, voicing his prideful expression. Still either not capable nor willing to bring his face up, Gumball muffled up some speech.

"Hey dad. . . Did you turn off the alarm clock?"

"What? Didn't you notice?"

"Notice what?"

"Who woke you up!"

". . . The alarm clock did right?"

"That was long past broken from yesterday, son. I did it!" Richard exclaimed, closing his eyes.

". . .Thanks I guess" Gumball mumbled, still disfigured on the carpet. "What time is it?"

"About 7:10 AM." Before Gumball could complain about the truly inexcusable hour his dad decided to wake him up at, on Saturday no less, he had already left.

It took around about thirteen minutes before Gumball mustered up the strength to rip his face off the carpet, with some strands of fur sticking to the floor like Velcro.

The first thing he saw was the outside window, where he could partly see the sunrise projecting its lustrous arms into the clouds above and the houses of the neighbourhood and the hills far off into the horizon, giving them all a twilight orange outline. Even, it seemed, the very sky around the Sun was being brightened. It was a rare sight to the worm-robbed bird that was he typically was, but with his dad, Gumball was surprised with its indiscriminate encompassment towards the whole of Elmore, like a cameraman atop a skyscraper – eager to include everyone inside its flash. _Is every morning like this?_

Looking to his right, he saw that his brother was still sound asleep. With a gasp: _Wha- does that bowl have sound deflection properties or something? Hmmm. . ._

* * *

"So what are you guys planning to do today?" Said Nicole, while placing the dishes that were fresh out of the sink to the cupboards.

Gumball, Darwin, Anais and Richard, like every morning, were congregated around their kitchen table – eating the most predictable of breakfasts: daisy flakes. Sounds of spoons scrunching up the cereal and chewing were all prominent at the table, and the Sun was gleaming through the window leading directly to each of the Wattersons' faces. They were all in a relatively brisk mood, besides Darwin who was feeling quite uneasy at the attention he was receiving from a certain cat – his gaze fading to the right at certain points. It seemed as if he was scrutinising the fish – analysing his every action, and probably thought – not giving him the bliss of a second away from his eyes that could not seem to be pried away from his body. But, with the topic Nicole posed at hand, he decided to withhold his state of being compelled to blurt it out to him.

"Well, I was thinking about going to the park today." Said the fish. This piqued his mother's interest.

"Oh! Well, are you going with anyone?"

"Actually, I'm going with my friends at school. We all agreed on Elmore Plus to meet up there." Nicole placed another plate in the floor cupboard. As such, her next statement was slightly muffled.

"What are you planning to do there? Nothing, dangerous right?" Darwin, finishing his chewing, replied.

"Uuuhh. . . I don't think so? I wouldn't be concerned mom. It's just my friends." She stood back up, readying for another plate.

"What time are you going?"

"Soon – after breakfast." At this point, as Darwin turned, Gumball was practically leering at him – his head extending to the centre of the table – seemingly ready to pounce at any moment like a predator slowly inching closer to its prey. . .

Darwin, feeling the most profound uncomfortableness he'd ever felt in his life, searched for a resolve.

"So. . . G—Gumball, what did you want to do t—today?" Darwin asked whilst biting his lip. Once all eyes were placed on him for attention, Gumball shot back to his usual sitting position, broke a sweat, and then started in a tone amounting to self-ridicule from. . . Whatever he was doing before.

"Uhh, well, I'm honestly not sure." He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I could go with you to the park, would that be okay?" It seemed as if the curiosity had infected Darwin, as he was the one now eyeing Gumball suspiciously.

"Sure. . . I don't think the guys would mind. I mean, we do go practically everywhere together." _I guess that is true._ Wordlessly mouthed Gumball. _We are inseparable._ Strangely, Anais, who had been silently eating her cereal while listening, looked slightly upset by his brother's decision. With the accursed awkwardness lifted, they all began at their cereal again in a comfortable silence, and within a few seconds, Nicole spoke again.

"Anais?" Nicole said, looking at the girl while scrubbing a cup she had in her hands.

"I was actually thinking of going to a science convention today, I was invited to give a talk there." Nicole almost dropped her cup in shock, and stared at Anais with utmost pride.

"Yes! You should definitely go there today!" Nicole shouted when pushing the cup into the cupboard. Anais had to smile at her reaction. It was nice to have a mother that appreciated her accomplishments, even if she was modest about them.

"Mom! It's really nothing too great."

"Yes it is Anais!" Said Richard, who was just as happy as Nicole was. "There are not many four year olds that give a talk, at a science convention no less!

Good little girl." He said whilst patting her head. Darwin and Gumball also had something to say.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Yeah! I'd give away my kidney to do what you're doing right now!"

"Thanks guys." And after finishing the remnants of their breakfast, they all dispersed; ready to engage in their weekend plans – all besides Gumball, who was held up by Anais cutely tugging on his sweater.

"Uummm. . . Gumball. . ." Stifling a giggle:

"Anais. You don't have to be so nervous." This seemed to vaguely calm her down, and she spoke after looking around the room for anything. Once she was certain, she spoke with more authority in her voice.

"Okay, I need you to do a massive favour for me." Gumball partly raised a brow.

"Sure, anything you need."

"Uuummm. . . How do I put this? I kind of. . . Lost my physics book somewhere at school. . . And I need a new one from the school library. The thing is, the science convention I'm going to today will last from dusk to dawn, and the library is closed on Sunday. So could you. . . Pick it up for me?" She said, forcing one of the most exaggerated smiles ever conceived – all of her teeth visible on her face. Gumball crossed his arms, taking it all in.

"I can't Anais. I'm going with Darwin to the park today. I need to be there soon." Anais' expression dropped.

"Please Gumball. I need this Physics book for the homework I need to do this weekend for my extra physics class on Monday. I have a very strict teacher and this homework isn't easy, even for me, and this is further exacerbated by the fact that there is nowhere else I can find the information other than this book, which is only in the school library." Gumball was befuddled, mostly because he had no clue what the work "exacerbated" meant, and because he had no idea what he should do. _Darn it, Anais. Why are you so good at convincing?_ It seemed like both of his options were equally weighted on the scale for Gumball, making it very hard to make a firm decision on what he wanted, and what he should do.

"Please?" Whimpered Anais. He stared at her for a moment, and saw her pleading eyes, desperate for help from someone higher than him – someone she looked up to despite all of his faults and stupidity.

And, with that thought tipping the scales, a resolve was cultivated within his heart, one which he did not like yet one he knew he wanted to do.

"Ugh, fine, I'll get the stupid book." He let out, his eyes rolling, all up until he felt soft, warm fur wrap his legs.

"Thank you! I'll promise I'll repay you. You know, you can still go to the park once you're finished, I'm sure they'll still be there, waiting for you."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." As Anais skipped away, devoid of worry and merrily content, Gumball had to further question his decision. Why did he say yes? Surely, it had an easy answer – who would want to trudge through the truly insipid and heinous place which we assign the name "library" to, yearning for a book that he had no prior obligation of obtaining, no interest reading as well as no idea where it could be amidst the literary labyrinth, over partaking in an exciting day with his friends and brother at the park? Surely, if the answer was so obvious, so intimate to him, why didn't he just remain stubborn without having a second consideration? But, nonetheless, that was exactly what he did – and now he had to brace though a gruelling day of dragging his feet to the library (which, to be reminded, isn't the closest to his home – especially since school buses are closed today), searching for the aforementioned physics scripture and go all the way back. Even just having the itinerary in his mind left him with shivers in his spine, and apathy in his step. _At the very least, I'll hopefully be able to catch Darwin and everyone else at the park later in the day. . . Who knows how long this could take?_

* * *

Before Candice knew it, she had already covered most of the distance from her home to her high school, and was on track towards the school library that was two blocks just around the corner. When she turned it, still with a smile from the simple reason that the Sun was completely overt, she had to silently relieve herself. _Finally!_

She began to take the trek towards it. The first street she was required to pass seemed very peculiar to her. Right at the beginning of the road, when she turned to her left, a concession stand of eggs clouded her sight, and the shop seemed to almost block the path it was on as well as the building behind it, making it seem like the owner – an egg himself – had a complete disregard for where he decided to situate his business in the town of Elmore. Not even twenty steps later, she came across a seed stand that also had a seed as its principle owner. He seemed to be derisively glaring at his (fellow) competitor, who returned the glare right back, and the eggs the opposition was selling seemed to be now boasting just from the seconds she took to walk closer to her destination.

Even more perplexing, even though this was a two-way street, it had signs on every empty area of pavement that didn't make them seem redundant, and were pointing every which way to all the, apparently very significant, shops that lined the street's side. And just as she was nearing her endpoint, she saw a very lavish church, with stained glass, crosses and all, hosting a dance party! _I've said it before, and I'll say it again – strange. . . She voiced to herself._

She got to the school after rubbing her temples, casted an ironic gaze in the High School's direction, and opened the doors to get to the school library.

The area was a very spacious one, and certainly one that would be begrudging to search through. Interminable sets of bookshelves that decorated the sides of the library, all having gaps in between them so the vast array of books could be accessed, housed everything anybody would want to read: sci-fi, romance, and, more predominantly, non-fiction texts – which was exactly what Candice was looking for. _It's going to take forever to find it. . ._

"Are you looking for something?" Sounded a gruff, archaic voice that originated to her left. Feeling her focus return to her quickly, she turned to find a quite wrinkly broccoli. She deadpanned at her appearance. _Wouldn't be the weirdest thing I've seen._

"Umm. . . Yes. Where is the Science section?" Replied Candice, not wishing to idle in meagre conversation. She made a vague point to the far end of the library, which made Candice raise a brow in her direction, but before she could take notice, her face was buried in her book. Seeing as there was not much point in persevering, she followed where her finger ushered her, and quickly arrived at the end of the library, where she had to scan the signs overhead each bookshelf. _History. . . Science, okay, that's a start._ It was then that she looked at the sub-sections hidden beneath each area. _Biology. . . Chemistry. . . and. . . Physics! There we go._ Satisfied, she hummed while turning the bookshelf.

Immediately the tune was forced out of her lungs.

The book was there (great), but it wasn't on the bookshelf. Rather, it was in someone's paw. A blue paw. _His_ blue paw. With frozen eyes and a quelled gasp, she observed, thankfully, that he was checking the front cover of the book, affirming whether or not it was indeed the book that he had intended to grasp – as if he was admiring the work to mock her timing. But this was not the moment for accusations, and as the gravity of the situation pulled down at Candice's nerves, stifling her reaction and causing her to tremble incessantly, she only had a single thought: _I—I've got to get out of here!_

But, the thought seemed to have its impulse halted, and her feet were still firmly clinging to the ground. Her mind frantically dozed off for a way out of this, out of sight, out of his vicinity, but she rapidly found that her mind was so occupied, so bristled with indecision, that the simplest and most primitive of actions seemed nearly impossible. _W—why can't I move?_ She barely managed; her eyes tightly locked to Gumball, who, somehow, managed to feel her frozen state, and surely brought his head from the cover to the end of the shelf. Now, the act seeming to strike her nonplussed mind with a mind of pure dread at the thought of what would happen if she was spotted, and her resolve lead her zipping around the corner – scarcely avoiding what could have been.

* * *

 _. . .Huh?_ Gumball questioned.

He was staring at the end of the physics isle, as if his eyes were being drawn to it. It was vacant, seemingly – just a blank spot that lead to the opposite end of the library. _I could have sworn I heard something. . ._ It took a while for Gumball to overcome his curiosity, and afterwards he took the trek back to the counter to get his book scanned.

Candice's breathing became erratic, as she had her back firm on the behind adjacent bookshelf to where she thought he was standing. Anticipation froze her form for the seconds that silence both graced and disgraced her nerves, all up until she recognised the sound of footsteps on the sturdy, library floor.

Assuming the worst, she frantically looked for somewhere else to hide. All that was ahead of her was a hallway – bookshelves closing in like booby traps. _Come on! I can't let him see me!_ She thought in vanity. The steps were getting louder by the millisecond. Inevitability was, more quickly than expected, becoming reality, and with the thought increasing her perspiration rate threefold, she took the drastic approach, and promptly stuffed herself into an empty bookshelf. A T-Rex walked past her section.

Gumball stared at the book cover in mild fascination whilst he was walking down the library. _Mr Robinson wrote this? He was a physicist?_ The thought almost seemed comical to him. _What's even in here? Hmm. . . I probably don't want to know._ And with that, he raised his head to find the counter, but he ended up seeing something much more interesting.

Shortly after exiting his section of the library, he was quick to spot her. I mean, it must have been particularly difficult to not spot a giant, lumbering T-Rex, whose steps seemed more meticulous over heavy. When she arrived at one of the sections, her eyes darted around the room – only to find nothing – and then she quickly scampered into the bookshelf gap. Seeing as there was ample time to kill, with the overcoming curiosity drawing him, Gumball went up to her section and read the sign above. _Fairy tales?_

Still with her heart racing with anxiety, she held her breath as her ears beheld the footsteps move past her, perhaps a bit more strongly than her expectations would suggest, and once the form (who she believed to be Gumball) treaded past her, she, for just a moment, was blessed a small bit of silence to assimilate.

 _Ugh, this is so uncomfortable_ was her first thought, her body compressed between a row of books and the confines of the wooden bookshelf. When she shuffled around, she was only met with the rough wooden surface and a small scrap along her back. Her knees dug into the side of her face, restricting all the movement she so desperately wanted right now.

 _This isn't about my interests; I just need to let him not see me._ Thought Candice, with a slightly vain tone.

 _Tina, the most awful bully in the entire school, who bumps her head on the ceiling, who will not hesitate to break down school property if it gets in her way, reads fairy tales. Some morals those books taught her._ Gumball had to stifle the laugh rushing out from his mouth (the pressure almost bursting his cheeks) with tears starting to form on the rim of his eyes.

 _I—I bet she was becoming a bit too old for nursery rhymes!_

Gumball couldn't take it anymore. The sarcasm was just way too much for him to handle, so the comedy welled up to the brim in his body burst outwards, and he dropped to the floor with his hands on his stomach, and a round sounding bellowing, with expression unmatched, took place within library doors. And you know what happens when you make a noise in library doors.

The librarian slammed her book on her desk, revealing her broccoli face which was a fiery red, and with the most vitriolic tone imaginable:

 **"SUSH!"**

The peremptory command – ironically louder than Gumball's guffawing – not only knocked all the hilarity (and happiness) out of Gumball, but it also caused a universal wobbling of books from atop their perched shelves as the intense sound waves echoed to every corner of the library. The tap of book covers attempting to steady themselves was prominent all throughout the library, but this wouldn't be for long, as many of the books were unstable enough to hang just on the verge of the edge that would flood the library in a sea of books. Dread kindled within Gumball and Tina as the watched for the inevitable.

The librarian paid no mind to the state of her library, and in fact, wore a faintly smug smile.

Solitude managed to pervade the air for a couple of seconds after Candice tried to adjust herself, and she found it as her cue to safety. _Whew! Hopefully he's gone by now._ Candice thought, as she stood up from the bookshelf. Once she dusted off her skirt and polo shirt (the library isn't the most kempt place in the world), her brain got set into motion. _So I need the book Gumball has, but I'm pretty sure that was the only one available on the shelves. . . Ah! I'll ask the librarian if she has any spares!_ A triumphant Candice thought, with a rare smile that not often graced her face from her classmate's observations.

But as she made the first step to potential freedom, she heard something. Something she'd recognise from miles away. The distinct laughter of that boy that was so content with staying in the same room with her. The same _library_ with her.

Distinguishing between that laughter was an easy task. It often started out quiet – even humble – until it picked up pace, and began to increase in pitch at regular intervals. Sometimes, Gumball would add the cutest snort into the mix, which made the laughter something to ad-

 **"SUSH!"**

*RUMBLE* *RUMBLE* *RUMBLE*

Candice was put right out of her reminiscence, as she began to notice the curious rumbling of something just above her. She looked up, but she immediately wished she hadn't.

What ensued was a torrential rainfall of multi-coloured books that started as high as the ceiling, and books in the tens of thousands came crashing and caving in on the entire library, drowning everyone in a sea of literature. The impact was enormous; the abrupt sound of crashing and tumbling pervaded the air for a short while, which soon became short-lived. Dust arose from the faded book covers, slowly dissipating as the library stayed stuck in an unnatural state of disorder, yet, a natural state of pure silence. The shuffling of three became apparent after a couple of moments of a strange, quelled chaos.

Tina was the first to peer her head above the massively displaced library owing to her size, and it took a while to adjust to her new surrounds. The entire library was filled with multi-coloured covers that raised up to four shelves, and clouds of dust wafted high. Even for a skull of her prehistorical rigidity, a panging headache bore on her, and her legs were slightly contorted from the intense pressure exerted by the books.

But that wasn't close to the worst part. Tina's 2nd edition of "Pinky Pixie" was ripped straight out of her diminutive hands, and there was someone to blame for that disaster. And that someone had to be someone in this library.

With an almost primal rage of the ages fuelling her resolve to crush, no, decimate the person who would even dare to trifle with the link between her and her fairy tales, she barged her way through the seemingly resistant mound of books to search the area for her prey.

Seconds later, Gumball managed to break his head through the book surface, and took a moment to catch his breath from the suffocating grasp of the novels and novellas. His eyes then scanned the area. _Wow. . . Who knew librarians would be so. . . scary._ Shivered Gumball. Just as he was about to climb out of his literary prison, he heard the harrowing roar of Tina quickly approaching behind him, and his breath was halted from sheer terror. As the dinosaur behind him was about to close in on him, in a very humorous way, he let himself drop into the book layer like a groundhog, and burrowed to the sides lest he be squashed under the powerful might of a dinosaur.

Books flew this way and that from Tina's rampaging form, spreading out far and wide and landing on every part of the library, like meteors during a bombardment.

Peering his head cautiously out again, Gumball watched in awe at the riot Tina was imposing on the already destroyed library, seemingly so easily provoked that even Gumball had to see Tina in an entirely new light. _She didn't even get this angry when Miss Simian gave her a four hour detention for crushing her car. . ._

While basking in the spectacle, a new thought occurred to him – one that he wasn't even afraid to vocalise.

"Where'd the book go?!" Rhetorically asked a panicked Gumball, as if he thought some transcendental force would help him search though tens of thousands of book that his possession may have potentially been lost in. _It'll be like finding a needle in a hay stack factory!_

Just as he was about to put his hands over his eyes in hopelessness, he saw a glimmer out of the corner of his eye. Bringing his head up, he witnessed the distinctive purple colour on a book cover soar high into the air from Tina's charge, with pages open and fluttering from its descent. It eventually dropped down onto the layer of books below, and settled there closed as books of similar pathways landed at its side. _There it is!_ Thought a lucky Gumball, as he began to stretch towards as if he was stuck in a bog pit.

Tina's frantic and desperate eyes perused the area of all of its contents, and they eventually settled on the lackadaisical figure of the librarian sitting calmly at the entrance of the maelstrom of events going on in the library.

Her eyes honed in on the figure, and then it let out a primitive roar and charged headlong into her direction.

The colossal creature of Tina was slowly closing in on the old broccoli women, barrelling to her with every intention of turning her already shrivelling form into dust, driven by an insatiable thought: _KILL, KILL, KILL!_

Mere seconds away from the collision taking place, the librarian once again dropped her book, and with a glare that would make the Gods bow down in cowardice before her, she screamed:

 **"NO RUNNING IN THE LIBRARY!"**

Immediately Tina skidded to a stop – all emotion that would of lead her to pulverising the librarian now replaced by a fear of being pulverised herself, and for a couple of seconds she just stood there, frozen in place. Her face betrayed utmost humility as the librarian glared at her – the tell-off apparently not enough to make up for her stressful day.

"Sorrry?" Mumbled Tina.

But the librarian was not done with her yet.

* * *

A sprawled Candice groaned as she tried to come back to her senses. Wh—What just happened?

She opened her eyelids, to find that she was met with even more darkness. She thought she was insane. She couldn't move, there wasn't any light seeping in from wherever she was, and overall, she was in an absolute daze – the reason why flying right past her head.

Retracting her arm, she thrusted her back upwards to see what was immobilising her.

It proved to be particularly heavy and resistant, but not very integral; Candice figured that she could move the substance if she put enough force in. She didn't know what happened, she didn't know how she got here, she didn't even know where 'here' was, but she was going to get out.

So, with a final push upwards, she broke through the material that was restraining her so heavily, and was relieved to finally see broad daylight.

Or broad lamp light.

 _Oh right. . . I'm still in the library_ Candice thought, in a slightly mocking tone. Rubbing her head, she glanced about her surroundings.

 _What happened here. . .?_ Thought a confounded cat, as she observed books stretching out through every corner of the library. The sheer density of scriptures demonstrated before her surprised eyes entirely disproved her initial assumptions about the apparently quaint school library she intended to travel through. It was as if a divine being was revoked by the inhabitants of the library, had its authority undermined, and sought to eliminate their very presence in the most destructive way. Other explanations weren't reasonable.

Bringing herself to her feet (or her knees, as her feet were firmly planted underneath the intense pressure of the books), she forced her way to the middle hallway of the library to hopefully gain some assistance or insight from the attendant, and turned her head in curiosity. It became apparent that the whole library was affected by. . . whatever it was. _Maybe it was an earthquake? No, we don't often get-_

A sudden, enraged, visceral roar vibrated the endless pool of books – overturning many on the surface –, shook the stiff wooden bookshelves that threatened to collapse, and rasped against Candice ears, causing a persistent ringing. Clutching her head tightly, the agonised cat wearily opened her eyes to examine what could have possibly produced such a noise.

"I—Is t—that a T—Rex?!" Screamed Candice, the ringing deluding her into believing she could utter a word with little consequence, whose eyes remained transfixed on the mighty creature before her, a creature who was thoroughly agitated, a creature whose eyes were burning with malice, a creature who would not hesitate to disembowel whoever lands in her line of sight if given the chance. _T—That thing must of knocked the books down!_

And that creature was twisting her head into her exposed position on the far end of the library.

Supressing a yelp, Candice promptly, almost comically, dove into the surrounding books – stuffing her body deep into the layer of books that now seemed to flood the library.

It didn't see a thing.

 _What is going on here?!_ Desperately cried a hyperventilating cat. _I mean, I just come here to pick up a freaking book from the library, which should of been done by now, but no! Craziness proves me otherwise! I mean, the attendant wasn't helpful at the start, but once I finally do get close, I get rained on by books! I nearly suffocated! And just because that wasn't enough, they put a predatory T-Rex staring right in my direction! I could have been hunted if she saw me, and now I'm stuck under a layer of books, with no light, a heavy weight on my head, and a dinosaur on the loose in the same room! And how could I forget_ him.

 _I wouldn't have to deal with all this insanity if he just decided to go pick up that stupid book on a different day! What would he even need that book for anyway? It's complicated stuff! I bet he saw me walking down the street, decided to pull a prank on me, rushed ahead to that section, and picked up the book that I needed for today!_

 _And it's not just today; it feels like he's trying to ruin me everywhere! That little. . ._

 _. . . I'm gonna take that book from him, if it's the last thing I do._ Stated Candice, with a bitter tone.

With resolve pulsing through her, she pushed herself up from her safety den, even ignoring the rampaging dinosaur roars that now seemed to be focused at a specific point.

"Hopefully it's him."

She trudged through the sea of books with a much greater ease than ever before, but just a couple of steps into her excursion doubt started to settle into her mind. _Wait. . . How am I even going get the book off of him? I mean, could I just walk up to him and ask politely?_ She mused, trudging further into where she heard the laugh that seemed so distant in time. _No, that wouldn't work; he needs the book as well. I could just to try taking it from him with force, but I don't really want to hurt anyone. . . Oh! Maybe I could- wait. . ._

Her eyes went wide as she witnessed probably the most comforting sight all day. There, lying idly on its side, with a pristine purple covering and thick pages written one of the greatest professors, was the physics book, the objective, the goal of today, right in front of her. It seemed as if it conspired from the most unlikely circumstances, but Candice wasn't going to be left to ponder anything. She just wanted this over with. _What a stroke of luck!_

Ecstatic at the convenience thought completely gone for the day, she bustled forwards in its direction.

But life wasn't going to hand that to her on a silver platter.

She groaned at an almost unnecessary volume, and sidestepped behind the closest bookshelf. _Oh come on! Seriously, does he know my location at all times or something?! How did he even see that the book was there? I mean, it is out there in plain sight but- No. I need to stop thinking. He is about to get the book I've spent the entire day trying to earn, and I am not going to let him!_

She tilted her head back towards the action. Gumball seemed to be moving almost intentionally slow, as if he was attempting to savour the ease at which he would finally get his book. Relief was splattered on his face, and with every step and thrust of his arms closer to the book, he seemed to become increasingly more excited. _Rookie mistake_ evilly thought Candice, who dove under the books shortly after.

* * *

 _After all this time,_ excitedly thought Gumball, after an eager stride. _I can finally,_ another stride. _Get this,_ another stride. _Darn book,_ another step. _And give it,_ one more step. _To Anais,_ one more. _So I can go to the park!_

Distance was accumulating. Grasping length was becoming more intimate. Gumball was a mere couple of metres away from his destination, his goal, his purpose, and the thought that his ticket to freedom was coming into arm's reach filled him with a sort of solace – a feeling of escape from all the insanity that took place at every opportunity around him. Feeling he was close enough, Gumball stretched his feline arm out to his prize, lurching forward to make all the effort he put into helping his little sister come to fruition as quickly as he could. Surely, his fingers were edging towards the final touch that would complete his mission, and they grazed over the purple cover, filling Gumball with a strange sort of satisfaction.

*POP*

*SHUFFLE* *SHUFFLE*

But just as quickly as he was feeling accomplished, his prize was promptly prised from him, and brought deep underground. Gumball stared dumbfounded at the vacant spot where the item of his day was sitting so still, so idly, only for it to swiftly move right out of his reach. His mouth couldn't be any wider than it was, and it took a couple of moments to overcome his shock, during which he questioned the reason he came here again. For him to go through this much trouble, this much abruptness, it better of been a good one. _I was so close. . . Wait a second!_ He exclaimed as he gripped his head. _It just went underground! That means that. . ._ Raising his head, he observed the retreating lump that formed from the layer of books underneath, which was made a turn in between the bookshelves still standing in the midst of the chaos around.

Crossing his eyes, he observed the trail that was left behind by his apparent thief. _I've come too far already; I will have that book!_

Candice let off a snicker as she tenaciously held onto her prized possession under the layer of books, rummaging through the seams like a mole, which proved to be a veracious comparison as she was being just as aggravating and stingy. _I'm going to get this book home if it's the last thing I do!_ She proclaimed.

And thus the chase began.

Gumball pushed himself toward where he saw the lump leave with his book, only to find that it was void of anything other than the mound of books that piled in like every other crevice of the library. _It must be moving towards the entrance. . ._

Candice didn't have much sense of direction underneath what was now deemed as the ground, so she had to protrude her head out when she reached a wall, and made an assumption to where the entrance would be. She pulled back her head, just as she thought she was on track, a statement froze her blood just in front of her.

"I've got you now!" Exclaimed Gumball, as he dove towards the lump who had taken ownership over his book, but it dashed to the next gap in the bookshelves before it could be reached. "Maybe I should have been sneakier. . ."

Now there was no reason to relax, even though she still closely clung onto the book to her side. He was now chasing her for the book, and unless she somehow managed to force him to diverge away from her path, there was a low chance she could get away successfully. _What's even in this book that's so valuable?!_

Recovering from his fall and clutching his aching head, he spun around to where he saw the lump was leaving. _I'm still not letting you leave with my book!_ Thought Gumball with conviction. He pushed himself past the books restricting him, as well as his physical limits, as he fell in pursuit of the supposed thief. He was hot on her trail, and discerning both of their speeds, time was of the essence for the unfortunate thing that deprived him of his goal.

She knew she didn't have long. Books that blocked her path in front of her proved to be frustratingly resistant, exacerbated by only having one limb able to push them out of the way for proper access, and the failing of her crawling legs. Her pursuer didn't show any signs of stopping, and once he was in pouncing distance, she knew that the book would no longer stay in her hand, despite all the tenacity she could muster. She simply couldn't expose her fleeting face above ground, but she knew she couldn't keep this up for long. As the brevity of her situation was beginning to become realised, Candice's mind sparked an idea. _If I can't go up. . ._

Excitement welled up within Gumball, fuelling his desire for nothing more than to pounce straight on his adversary and prise the book straight from their hands. An almost instinctual resolve was allowed to freely reign over him as the time and space was closing in between him and his ticket out of this place. _Just a little more and I'll be able to-_

Abruptly, the protrusion left his sight without so much as a warning, and seemed to vanish from the library completely. A vacant spot was left in its place, almost indistinguishable from the entire library floor, and certain was not anything of interest. In amazement, Gumball meekly strode to the spot where he was agonisingly yearning to be on the top of his foe, but there was simply nothing. "Is it so hard to get a freaking book?!" He asked to the Heavens above. "It just had to disappear on me. . ."

What actually happened flew right past his head. . . Err, feet, as Candice quietly snickered under the very bottom of the library, her knees almost touching the actual floor long forgotten from the change in scenery. She had swum into the deepest recesses of the layer of books, into the lowest reaches of the library. All the time she waited for him to leave the area, with an almost deranged satisfaction from seeing her ingenuity's results as she heard his movement's sounds fade slowly into the distance. . .

 _He finally left!_ Candice revelled in all kinds of relief. _Now I can finally bring this ho-_

 _AIR, AIR! I NEED AIR!_

Bursting through the water like a drowning swimmer, Candice inhaled a large chunk of the atmosphere, aerating her lungs with the fresh substance, and transitioned her purple face back to its usual red hue. _That layer must have been really thick. . ._

With a slow recovery, her mind came back to her from all that just happened. _What a crazy trip this has been. . ._ She brought the now dusty book to her eyes. _All for you. . ._ It took the appearance of something conspicuously old but also something that time couldn't falter; an item that was still useful even now as society has shifted and changed so much. Possibly most salient of all was the small print inscribed upon the bottom of the front cover. Dr G. Robinson. _What an amazing and successful physicist. . . I wish I could meet him someday; he's probably retired but very content with all his achievements._

. . . *Cough*

After the irony settled, Candice took her earned, victorious stride back to the entrance of the library. As she was about to pass the corner, she felt tentative. She paused mid-step, and pondered if she should move any further. Or rather, why she wasn't.

A strange sort of battle of contrasts was felt in the air around her. The place was eerily silent – all sound snuffed out and destroyed by something she could feel all around her. It felt like a normal library environment, yet, a peculiar one all the same, as if what was around her was exaggerated to the extreme. The large room was homogenous with what was intended of a library before the initial chaos seemed to ensue, but now that it seemed resolved (besides the fact that all the books were lodged out of their shelves), it felt as if there was still something missing or vacant from what she expected. Something forgotten.

Shaking off the ambivalence towards the library with the reminder of achievement that she finally got her treasured book, she took an, albeit weary, step in the direction of the entrance.

* * *

"I hope this will be okay." Said Gumball as he rummaged through another pile of books, leading him to find another acclaimed Physics book. "Knowing my sister, these books probably won't be but it's better than nothing. . ."

The cat was collecting an array of books into side, balancing them with his arm so they wouldn't fall. They were all relatively thin, so with the addition of the book he just picked up, he managed to handle four of them and carry them around the library. "I'm sure these books will at least help her a bit with her homework. . . I know I'm definitely not getting the actual book she wanted back – who knows where that went?"

"There's another Physics book. . ." Said a melancholy Gumball as he trudged his way to the entrance of the library, where the book lay unsuspectedly.

But as he approached it, he heard a high yelp originate to his right, and pried his sight away from his fifth book to his side. All he saw was a small dent in the layer of books, a couple of books that flew high from its surface, and the obvious sound of someone scurrying for escape underneath the protection of the layer of books that coated the library floor. From the sound, he assumed it must have been a girl, and the form before it became one with the books looked oddly familiar to him. . .

Wasting no time, knowing that the escapee must have been causing the lump that he was forced to chase from before, he commanded: "Hey! Stop with my book!" And promptly ran as fast as he could in the midst of books, with rage induced steps serving as a sign that he was on the brink of mental collapse.

And whoever was grasping his book was the cause of all of it.

But still so far away from getting to it, ready to drop the four books he collated for more speed, he heard something else, this time to his left, where the entrance was located.

It fell faint on the feline's ears, so he had to stop from his pursuit to try and identify it. He couldn't construe it as anything – it was hopelessly muffled from the library's entrance door. However, one thing was definitely assured from listening closely. It was coming this way.

Gradually, the noise became louder as time flowed excruciatingly slowly, and it now was partially distinguishable. The now composite sound waves reached Gumball's ears as he attempted to funnel it with his hands. _Is that. . . Screaming?_

*SMASH!*

With the force and abruptness of a car crash, a T-Rex exploded through the front of the library, sending its doors to opposite ends of the room, and turning the outer rim of the door into a pile of crumbing dust as it barrelled through its wall. It sent a wave of sound forcefully rushing about the library, reverberating throughout it and shaking the roof that seemed to be on the verge of imploding at this stage. Gumball could only watch in pure incredulousness as Tina flailed wildly around, spinning in circles and arcing her back almost painfully as her large tail swung powerfully around her, knocking books as high as the lights above her head in turmoil.

But perhaps the most stark and salient sight was the fuming red librarian who had her arms tenaciously gripped on the dinosaur's scales on her back, domineering the animal with its almost crass and ironically insolent words.

 **"YOU EXPECT TO RUN IN MY LIBRARY AND GET OFF WITH A SORRY?! OH NO, NOT ONE FORM OF APOLOGETIC SORROW IS GOING TO REFORM THE STRESSFUL DAY IVE BEEN FORCED TO FIGHT MY WAY THROUGH! ON A SATURDAY NO LESS! YOU DARN KIDS JUST DON'T KNOW HOW TO CONFORM TO RULES!"**

After letting her acrimonious speech known to the universe, she almost adeptly steered the creature to the other end of the library. Tina was looking very uncomfortable from being forced to move against her will, but for once in her post-historic existence, she felt a pervasive dread kindled within her, and it prevented her from so much as laying a claw on her with her stubby hands.

Intently focusing on the exposed wall, she smiled with flagrant malevolence, and let out one more proclamation before she did what must be done. **"THIS IS WHAT YOU GET FOR MESSING WITH THE LIBRAIAN!"**

And with that, she leaned forward and smacked the T-Rex to go forward, and it was coerced to comply, as it was sent speeding toward the wall.

Gumball could only watch in awe, completely forgetting about what he was doing beforehand, as Tina was sprinting towards a wall she fully intended to collide with, and observed in anticipation as to what would become of the resulting few minutes. Judging by their scenic entrance, the finality to this indefinitely ridiculous excursion wasn't going to be pretty.

*CRASH!*

As the dust from the area of the collision suffused into the air, a gaping, broad hole was left at the site of the impact, with cracks and indentations spreading outwards with some reaching as far as the high ceiling. A massive depository of crumbled rock was left as a piled on the layer of books, each settling atop one another like a mound. The two deranged things were nowhere to be seen within the failing library walls.

Candice had watched the whole thing through a small opening in the books she was under, and she would only have to describe it as a spectacle to behold, her shaking figure and bewildered eyes testifying to this. She simply retained her position, stuck in shock, as she waited for all the dust to settle and the air to be cleared of sound.

She couldn't recall how long she stayed in that one spot, but as she felt her senses justifying a familiar wave of reassurance which washed over her, she picked herself off from her den. She perused her surroundings. _Looks like that T-Rex thing is gone. . . probably for good._ Candice shivered from the thought, as well as from the wind which encroached upon her from the newly formed hole. _I don't hear anything else. . . so Gumball's probably gone as well._ Thought Candice gruffly. _Just as I thought he was gone from the library, he proved me wrong. . . again. Now I can finally go back home safely with my- WAIT! WHERE'S THE BOOK!_

She scrambled about in panic for only several seconds as she saw it lying there in the ditch she just came out of, which it's pristine purple coating.

"Phew! Got a bit worked up there." She mused, chuckling.

She took the book to her hand after looking at its pages in amazement, and took the journey back to her mansion.

It was difficult to navigate through all the books that shrouded the library floor and occluded the entrance, but she managed to rummage through it all despite her intense exhaustion. _I have no idea how they would even start to clean all this up. . ._ She mused as she stared backwards.

As she was walking through the hallways, remembering how she ended up burrowing through said piles of books, a curious thought occurred to her.

 _Why did I so badly want to avoid him? Throughout the entire time at the library, after I saw him grab my book, that seemed like my entire objective! Besides getting the book of course._

She opened the front doors to the school, still pensive.

 _It's embarrassing to be seen in a library alone, that's probably the reason. Although, I don't think I felt that when I saw him alone as well. . . maybe it's because I didn't want to feel I needed to talk to him? We were the only ones in that library, besides the crazy librarian and that T-Rex. I think it'd be difficult to have a conversation with her. . . Yeah, that's it. I hate awkwardness and talking in general, so I don't see how he could be any exceptio-_

Whilst seemingly enthralled in her thoughts, Candice was caught unaware when her body slammed into another person ahead of her who was walking the same pavement just outside her school, and she ended up landing on her behind. Her book that was grasped in her hands ended up flying in front of her, and landed just a couple of metres in front of the other person, who seemed to be carrying books as well, which were all scattered in front of them and Candice.

When the red feline heard the sound of her physics book thudding against the pavement, she could have sworn she cracked. It took so much time, so much strenuous effort to receive this treasured item, which she fully expected she would encounter no other obstacles when delivering it home. Apparently, the person in front her thought otherwise, and if the inadvertent (to Candice it felt very intentional) collision was any indication; it seemed as if her path to freedom was ripped straight out of her hands, once again. Literally. So, she got up, ready to fully scold the person who couldn't so much as look up while walking, with a strange avarice fuelling her frustration, and was about to give an extensive and virulent tirade to hopefully straighten them out. But as her eyes slightly gazed over their form, she hesitated fatally.

He was lying on his back with his eyes closed, rubbing on his sore back from the impact, and betrayed irritation all over his face when his collection of five books was prised straight out of his hands. The very person she was so persistent on avoiding, the person who was with her the entire time separate within the library doors; the person who would undoubtedly recognise her as the girl who he had to chase to get the book that was laying in front of him. _Him._

Gumball thought his day couldn't get any worse. He already had to compromise in his duty to his sister, owing to that infuriating lump that stole his rightful possession, and he knew as he was walking out the new hole in the library wall back to home, that he couldn't take much more of this. And boy was he correct. Even with his equanimity, a violent whirlpool of emotions flooded him, threatening to drown whoever was so mindless that they couldn't even show at least some assiduity, and stood up, still clutching his head.

But nothing came when his eyes narrowed his sights on the girl in front of him. In fact, he _felt_ nothing; it wasn't a sort of indifference to their unexpected meeting, as that would imply it was voluntary. His body just simply was being disallowed to feel any sort of emotion as he stared at the girl returning his gaze, except a pervasive shock from the turn of events.

Candice's throat instantly became devoid of any rushing words previously wishing to become expelled to the boy in front of her, and she was simply forced to stay where she was, staring at him. Nor could she even do anything; evident by her, and seemingly his, complete disregard for the books that were sprawled across the floor, both with incredulous looks adorning their faces. Surely if the person, who so readily snatched the very reason she went to the library from her, that put her in so much trouble and exhaustion, was standing right in her face, she should feel an unwavering rage kindled inside her. Peculiarly, the very opposite was occurring. Candice's heart began to race, supposedly, from the grim realisation that if no one muttered a word, they were going to be stuck in their stupor forever; but Candice was far from willing to talk first.

Before he got up and forced into his dazed state, Gumball noticed the physics book that his sister wanted so badly lying down next to him, probably yanked straight out of Candice's hands. He probably should have taken it from the pavement where it lay idly, especially with the contempt he was feeling among many other emotions. But as he stared into the girl's eyes, he felt frozen, stiff; unwilling to move a muscle or even utter a word to get out of his strange situation. The awkwardness after several minutes was starting to weigh on him, threatening the crush him into the pavement if they both stayed where they were, vexed. And so, with an insurmountable amount of courage, he spoke first.

"Ummm. . . Hey?" Wearily mumbled Gumball. It took several more seconds for Candice to heed his talking, but when she did, she dreaded the thought of needing to reply. Yet, the obligation was becoming too large at this point, so a flustered feline opened her mouth to respond.

"H—H—i!" Said Candice, who promptly cringed straight after. _Seriously? Is that what you say to him?!_ Admonished Candice.

The awkwardness became pervasive for the half a minute that silence reigned between the two; neither one of them knowing how to carry on their small talk, but also neither one of them wanted to seem curt and simply sprint off with their book(s) in hand. However, it became too much.

"Sooo. . ."

"Sooooo. . . . ."

"Wait!"

"Oo—ps!"

"Sorry!"

"S—S—orry!"

"You talk first."

"Y—Y—You can talk first."

"Uhh. . ."

"Eep!"

They both mumbled concurrently. It was after a couple of more moments of a dreading anticipation of what the other would say, especially the mention of either of their alleged thievery and subsequent chase scene, they simply decided that rudeness was irrelevant at this stage in their circumstances. They would never have to see each other again anyway.

So, they both dropped to the floor, and as quick, disorganised and ungraceful as a thief, the two scrambled to obtain their books. Hands quickly darted around and grabbed whatever resembled the books they stole when they left the accursed library, with Gumball being the more frantic of the two, as he had five books to collect as opposed to one. At some point during their swift succession of movements and actions, their fingers made contact with one another, and they both froze for about half a second, with a large blush adorning both of their cheeks, before resuming their onslaught of grabs.

Once they had acquired their desired amounts of books, they both stared at each other for several more seconds. Afterwards, they both reciprocated a terse chuckle, before sprinting to opposite ends of the school like there was no more daylight left in the world.

"I'm never going to the library again!"

"Why did I even do this?!"

After the two were at opposite ends of the Earth, a tranquil silence was left on the front of the school grounds, with the glorious Sun expressing its love to the world at its zenith – perfectly overhead the insane town of Elmore.

* * *

When Gumball slammed open the door to his house, still in a slight daze from what just happened even after his long walk back to his house, he dumped the five books onto the table with a note stating the following:

"Dear Anais.

I didn't get your book because we live in Elmore, and things happen.

I hope these books will be enough for what you need to do.

Please don't kill me.

From the brother you love, Gumball."

The sound of the door shutting shook the house as Gumball left to go to the park with Darwin, and the top book slid from the pile, laying open on the floor with the words "By Dr. G Robinson" apparent in the midday sunlight seeping in through the window.

* * *

 **Yup. I just wrote an entire chapter based in a library. I have no idea what the consensus will be on that. . .**

 **Phew, you don't know how relieved I am to be writing the ending author's note right now. All that effort, all that emotional confusion, finally coming to fruition on your eyes. I hope you enjoyed it, especially the crazy librarian. That was the best part to write XD.**

 **Still, I'm not going to let pride overtake me, and therefore I would appreciate a review from anyone reading this, even if very short, but I would especially like some criticism.**

 **Also, just as an opinion, what do you prefer for the title: "An Unavoidable Impact", or "An Unaware Impact"? I chose the former because of its how strangely explicit it is, but I feel the second on harbours more ambiguity. Let me also know in the review section.**

 **I'll see you later and hope you have a good day/night! I know I did finally finishing this.**

 **CrOxxx.**


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